Where Ideas Become Action!

Research and Investigation at IU

At IU, we’re proud to recognise students who go above and beyond in their academic journey. Twice a year, we award the IU Diversity Award to outstanding Bachelor’s, Master’s, and MBA theses that explore and champion the topic of diversity across all study formats, including dual studies and distance learning.

The award aims to increase public awareness of diversity research and its societal relevance. Topics may include Gender & Queer Studies, Inclusion, Ethnicity, Racism, and related fields.

The Autumn 2025 IU Diversity Award was awarded to Jenny Elisa Pabst for her Master’s thesis in Pedagogy, Educational Counselling and Management (M.A.). Her research advocates for equitable inclusion in Hamburg daycare centres and highlights the importance of diversity-sensitive leadership in inclusive personnel development.

Learn more about our Diversity Award winner!

At IU, we believe exceptional work deserves to be celebrated. Each year, we present the Best Thesis Award to students whose Bachelor’s or Master’s theses stand out for their academic excellence, originality, and practical relevance.

This award highlights the dedication and impact of our students’ research and encourages future graduates to push boundaries, explore bold ideas, and contribute meaningful knowledge to their field.

Read more about our latest winners below!

Tom Bielen - B.Sc. Applied Psychology

Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy for Major Depressive Disorder Versus Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review Comparing Clinical Outcomes, Safety Profiles, and Methodological Characteristics

Systematic reviews are demanding research, and they are generally discouraged at undergraduate level: identifying and appraising studies, then synthesising and interpreting the evidence, asks for real methodological rigour. Tom took the challenge on anyway, comparing psilocybin-assisted therapy in major depressive disorder against treatment-resistant depression across clinical outcomes, safety profiles and methodological quality, with expert execution. The result sits well beyond what would normally be expected of a BSc thesis, and is now being prepared for submission to a scientific journal.

"I chose a systematic review because the efficacy of psilocybin in major depressive disorder and in treatment-resistant depression had never been set side by side, even though the two populations are defined differently, the second by the failure of at least two adequate antidepressant trials. Working through the screening and the appraisal taught me how clinical evidence actually gets built, and comparing the two conditions showed me how much a single eligibility criterion can shape the picture a field has of itself. I thank my supervisor, Dr. de Witt Huberts, for her guidance, and we are now preparing the review for submission."

Yolanda Quevedo Cruz - B.A. Aviation Management

Sustainability and Innovation through the Implementation of the ITW GSE 7400 90 kVA Electric Ground Power Units (eGPUs) in the Galapagos Seymour Airport: A Feasibility Analysis and Its Benefits

Yolanda's thesis addresses a pressing question in aviation sustainability: whether Galápagos Seymour Airport could replace its fuel-burning ground power with electric units. Through a feasibility analysis of the ITW GSE 7400 90 kVA eGPU, the study weighs technical viability against the operational and environmental benefits of powering parked aircraft electrically in one of the world's most extraordinary environments. Beyond its analytical rigour, the work stands out for being genuinely actionable with a concrete implementation plan rather than a theoretical exercise. It is the kind of research that makes IU proud to be instrumental in making a difference.

"I would like to thank my lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, my parents, supervisors, and everyone who helped me in this thesis process. I would like to make a call to all of us, to take action. We are currently entering an irreversible climate catastrophe. We must unite and raise our voices for those who don't have one. We must fight the system that drives the destruction of human life, biodiversity, and our precious resources. We must have the conviction to fight for the planet and the future generations to come. There is still hope and still time."

Owen Mills - B.Sc. Computer Science

The Relationship Between Open Source Software License and Project Popularity on GitHub

Owen set out to find whether the licence a project chooses has any bearing on how popular it becomes, and answered it with real GitHub repository data rather than assumptions. The empirical work is technically excellent, with the kind of execution that many master's theses don't reach.

"I want thank my parents and grandparents for their continued support throughout my studies, career and life. I would also like to thank Prof. Battenfeld for his advice and guidance allowing me to complete this thesis. Finally I would like to thank IU for its support and flexibility, allowing me to complete this piece of work whilst travelling through and working in different countries."

Kgomotso Larry Sebela - M.Sc. Applied Artificial Intelligence​

Lightweight Real-Time Sign Language Recognition on Edge Devices for Educational Accessibility Using Spatial-Temporal Feature Fusion

This thesis combines technical ambition, methodological rigour and clear societal relevance. Rather than chasing recognition accuracy alone, Kgomotso took on the harder challenge of making continuous sign language recognition compact, fast and interpretable enough to be used in real educational settings. He compared different approaches, learned from the ones that didn't work, and built a lightweight model that performs competitively. Sound research turned into a functional and socially meaningful prototype.

"According to the WHO, around 430 million people are deaf and hard of hearing globally. The modern technology today does not accommodate these people. I would like to thank my professor for pushing me and helping me bring a project like this to life, and to IU for creating a place where research like this can matter. This project belongs to everyone working to make technology genuinely inclusive."

Mansi Raghuwanshi​ - M.A. International Management ​

Process Optimisation as a Strategic Tool for Improving Operational Efficiency in European Digital Organisations

This thesis develops a novel AI-KYC process maturity framework that integrates process optimisation, AI governance, and regulatory compliance for European FinTechs. It deserved to win for its originality, academic rigor, and strong practical impact, providing a scalable roadmap for AI-enabled, audit-ready compliance.

"My master's thesis explored the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in optimising Know Your Customer (KYC) processes within the FinTech industry. The research examined how AI-driven solutions can enhance operational efficiency, reduce manual effort, improve regulatory compliance, and create a smoother customer onboarding experience. By analyzing the opportunities and challenges of AI adoption in KYC, the study highlighted how emerging technologies can support more secure, accurate, and scalable financial services."

Sameer Patil​ - M.Sc. Computer Science 

Design and Implementation of an End-to-End Automation Pipeline for Semiconductors in the Area of Product Management

This thesis develops a production-ready automation pipeline that transformed fragmented semiconductor planning data into a secure, validated analytics platform at Bosch. It deserved to win for its technical excellence, measurable business impact, and enterprise-ready implementation, reducing manual effort by 88% and delivering significant annual cost savings.

"My thesis, 'Design and Implementation of E2E Automation Pipeline for Semiconductor Product Management Data,' was conducted in collaboration with Bosch and focused on developing a scalable end-to-end automation solution using Microsoft Fabric to improve the efficiency, reliability, and scalability of semiconductor product data management. The implemented solution reduced manual effort by approximately 67%, improved data quality, established a centralized source of truth, and enabled faster, data-driven decision-making. I am sincerely grateful to my thesis supervisor, Professor Dr. Sameer Joshi, for his invaluable guidance and continuous support throughout this research, and to the Bosch team for providing the opportunity to work on a real-world industrial project. Receiving the Best Thesis Award is a great honour and motivates me to continue contributing to innovative software engineering, automation, and data engineering solutions."

Manali Arora – M.Sc. Data Science

Developing a Framework for Drug Repurposing Using Knowledge Graphs and Large Language Models

This thesis addresses a highly relevant and innovative topic in drug discovery and biomedical research. By integrating knowledge graphs and large language models, it applies advanced AI-driven methods to analyze structure–activity relationships between drugs, genes, and diseases, identifying over 5,000 clinically relevant candidates for alternative therapeutic uses. A key contribution of the study lies in the integration of graph-based embeddings with large language model–driven reasoning, combining structured biomedical databases with unstructured scientific literature within a unified analytical framework. This hybrid AI approach enables a scalable and systematic exploration of complex biological relationships across therapeutic domains. In addition to its methodological rigor, the study is characterised by a carefully documented and transparent research design, the responsible and purposeful use of AI technologies, and a critical, self-reflective examination of the results and their broader implications. The thesis demonstrates a novel and effective strategy for rapidly uncovering new therapeutic possibilities and offers a highly relevant, cost-efficient alternative to the traditional development of new drugs.

"My thesis deepened my understanding of how advanced AI can responsibly accelerate drug discovery. Working at the intersection of knowledge graphs and language models shaped my commitment to advancing data-driven biomedical innovation. I am sincerely grateful to Prof. Dr. Markus Hemmer for his expert guidance and to my family for their unwavering support."

Aditi Jahagirdar - M.Sc. Artificial Intelligence

Assessment of Using Synthetic Data in Brain Tumor

Segmentation

This thesis extended beyond the academic setting, resulting in a co-authored scientific publication, which can be found here. The research investigates synthetic data generation to support brain tumor diagnosis, a topic of significant academic and societal importance. The work has attracted interest from major medical technology leaders, including Siemens, where it has been recognised as a promising approach.

"My thesis advances medical imaging techniques and contributes to critical patient care. I sincerely thank my supervisor, Prof. Dr. phil. Sameer Joshi, for his invaluable guidance throughout the process, which ultimately led to the publication of our work. I am also grateful to my family for their constant support while I balanced this research alongside full-time professional responsibilities. A special mention to my baby girl, whom I was expecting during this time. This journey reflects my resilience and persistence in achieving long-term goals."

Samira Yerima Bako – Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Financing Decision of Healthcare Firms – An Empirical Study of BRICS Countries

Samira’s thesis addresses a highly relevant and widely debated topic in corporate finance. Applying advanced econometric techniques with full reproducibility and transparency, the research earned recognition at the highest academic level. In addition to its methodological rigor, the study provides valuable policy insights using World Bank financial system indicators. The thesis has been developed into a publishable research paper and is currently under review at Financial Innovation, a Top A-ranked journal in finance.

"I learned how to look at healthcare from a different angle. I plan to use this knowledge in the future, whether in research, consultancy or when working in healthcare administration. This would not have been possible without the help of my supervisor Prof. Kunal Saigal who was very supportive and gave me strict and direct guidelines and was there for me when I needed him. I would also like to thank my husband for pushing me to do this MBA."