MTEC Day 2025, with a new GPA record
MTEC Day 2025 marked the graduation and awards ceremony for the MSc MTEC and MAS MTEC programmes. The event featured a record-breaking GPA, awards for brilliant Master's theses, engaging speeches, and an apéro that almost would not end.
On 28 March’s MTEC Day, the Department of Management, Technology, and Economics (D-MTEC) dispatched another flock of capable graduates into the wild world of work. The ceremony saw 114 MSc MTEC and 53 MAS MTEC graduates celebrated for their achievements, and their collective relief at the prospect of weekends no longer dominated by group projects and econometrics exercises.
Professor Stephan Wagner, Head of D-MTEC, opened the festivities with insights into the department’s evolution. Ralph Kreis, an alumnus turned Partner and Managing Director at AlixPartners, delivered a charming keynote, recounting his student days with a smidge of nostalgia. He encouraged graduates to tackle complex global transformations, assuring them that no client challenge would be harder than an ETH exam.
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Stephan Wagner, Head of D-MTEC, addresses a full Audimax -
Keynote by Ralph Kreis
In his student address, MSc MTEC graduate Marc Denzel spoke highly of his colleagues, the proximity to the faculty, and the strength D-MTEC gave him and his fellow students to confront the challenges the world is facing today. Less so about having to pass ten exams in two weeks.
MAS MTEC graduate Romain Zuber reflected on the contrasting aspects of his studies: academic rigour and the benefits of going through it together as colleagues and sometimes even as friends.
Denzel also took home the prestigious Willi Studer Prize with an astonishing GPA of 5.93. This set a new record for the MSc MTEC and exceeded the previous best held by Kaiwen Guo – both of them with a Bachelor’s degree from TU Munich.
The ETH MAS Excellence Award, recognising the highest GPAs within the MAS cohort, were awarded to Simon-Pierre Le Clézio, Patrick Schmid, and Dr Jörg Wagner, who also became the first MAS MTEC graduate to receive an ETH Medal, presented by Professor Stefano Brusoni, ETH Zurich’s Vice Rector of Continuing Education. Wagner’s innovative research on technology-driven decision-making in endurance sports made even seasoned runners reconsider their fitness apps.
Other ETH Medal recipients included Tim Gmünder, who explored financial flexibility and corporate environmental sustainability; Nils Löwhagen, who adapted critical path methodology for manufacturing contexts; and Daniel Schoess, who contributed insights into product analytics within retail environments.
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Happy and sad that his MAS MTEC chapter closes: Romain Zuber -
MSc MTEC student speaker and GPA record holder Marc Denzel -
Multi-award-winning Jörg Wagner (right) and ETH Vice Rector for Continuing Education Stefano Brusoni (left)
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ETH Medal awardee Daniel Schoess -
ETH Medal awardee Nils Löwhagen -
ETH medal awardee Tim Gmünder -
MAS Excellence awardee Patrick Schmid -
MAS Excellence awardee Simon-Pierre Le Clézio
Evelina Kramer aptly led through the evening with gentle musical interludes from “Pamela”, whose guitar and voice set a relaxed tone. Off-stage, a photo booth proved a hit until closing, capturing countless selfies graduates hope to hide from future employers.
The event was rounded off with an apéro lively enough to extend spontaneously, perhaps confirming the business theory that networking opportunities exponentially improve after a second glass of prosecco.
ETH D-MTEC’s newest alumni are left with degrees and smiles firmly in place, ready to lead, innovate, and possibly catch up on sleepless nights.