September is slowly making its way through the treetops, reminding us how much we miss you all and look forward to seeing you again...

The 51st International Physics Olympiad (IPhO2021), the world's premier event for the world's most talented physics students, concluded in Vilnius over the weekend. Nearly 400 students from 76 countries took part in the two parts of the Olympiad - experimental and theoretical - and Lithuania played a special role this year by organising the week-long Olympiad by distance learning.

South Korean student Kim Kyungmin was the top scorer in the Olympiad, with the highest score in all tasks. Gold medals went to students from Russia, China, Singapore, USA, France, Romania and Hungary.

Lithuanian students Emilis Strazdas (teachers Stasė Traigienė student) and Tomas Babelis (teachers Remigijus Jakutis, Stasė Traigienė student) from Vilnius Jesuit Gymnasium, Monika Šadauskaitė from KTU Gymnasium (teacher Alvydas Jotautis), and Justas Kaminskas (teacher Genovaitė Meinorienė) from Mažeikiai Gabija Gymnasium, were awarded the bronze medals. Tadas Danilevičius from Klaipėda Lyceum (teachers Saulius Žukauskas, Marius Žadvydas) was awarded a letter of commendation.

Students from all over the world took part in virtual tours of Lithuania, listened to lectures by Nobel Laureate Didier Queloz. Lithuanian physics scientists, competed in brain battles, and watched folk dancing and Lithuanian food preparation lessons.

The event was coordinated by the Faculty of Physics of Vilnius University and involved a team of almost 200 people.

LR Švietimo, mokslo ir sporto ministerijos informacija (www.smm.lt)

When I entered the Vilnius Jesuit Gymnasium, I was hoping to get into the English class. However, my mother's tick next to the German language class turned my life in a different direction. German became not only my favourite subject at school, but also my life companion. Today, I am a graduate and have been studying German for eight years. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from inspiring teachers, and I am especially grateful to my German teachers Lina Čepienė, Ulrike Jansen and Sigita Žurauskienė for their interesting and usually extraordinary lessons and discussions on topics that you can only imagine! After the DSD II German exam, I received an offer to apply for a DAAD scholarship to cover all the costs of studying in Germany. I was thinking that I would like to connect my studies with German and other foreign languages, and maybe even Germany itself. The country has always fascinated me with its progress, its old cities and Bach, and I have many memories and people connected with it. I therefore took this offer as a sign from life and decided to run.

The scholarship means a lot to me. It's still hard to believe. It is a reward for hard work and perseverance, and it inspires me to keep going, to keep going, to keep going, and above all, to not be afraid and to keep trying. Applying for the scholarship, even in this difficult time for humanity, has shown me how sincere and supportive people can be. I am grateful to the DAAD organisation and the Central Agency for Education for giving such an opportunity to young people, to the German Embassy in Lithuania, to the Vilnius Jesuit Gymnasium for the opportunity to grow and develop, to all the teachers in my life, to my class teacher, Digna Navikienė, who believed and encouraged me, and to my friends who listened to me almost every day: "So do you know anything about Germany yet?" The DAAD scholarship will help me to study Media and Communication at one of the oldest universities in the world, where Abraham Culvite, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Nietzsche have all walked the corridors. Already in those days, people from Lithuania were winging their way to study abroad to bring back knowledge and a different view of the world to their country.Tikiuosi, jog studijuodama Vokietijoje galėsiu tobulėti, praplėsti savo horizontus ir tapti žmogumi, kurio žinių ir patirties reikės ateities Lietuvai.

Simona Falkaitė

In my head right now, alongside all the dates in history and mathematical formulas, there is another thought: 'We will get to where we need to be'. The important thing is to remember to follow OUR own path.

DAAD - the German Academic Exchange Service - supports German and international students to study in Germany at various levels of higher education. More about scolarships