Professor Dr.-Ing. Winfried Wilke worked as a professor at THWS from 1 September 2004 to 30 September 2025 – more than 20 years. During this time, he was chairman of the senate, professor of measurement technology and programme director for the bachelor's degree in Hydrogen Technology at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, as well as programme director for Engineering Education for a short period. In this interview, he talks about his passion for teaching and reveals the advice he gives his students before they start their careers.
Published on 21 January 2026
How did you come to be a professor at THWS?
I applied for the professorship in process measurement in the traditional way, via a job advertisement – at a time when presentations were still given using transparencies for overhead projectors. After completing my Abitur and my military service, I studied general Machine Tool Engineering and then went on to do my doctorate. Working closely with my boss at the time, a professor, I quickly realised that what he was doing was something I could and wanted to do too. After gaining a few years of experience in industry, which is required for a professorship at a university of applied sciences, I was appointed to THWS.
In addition to your professorship, you were also chairman of the THWS Senate.
I have always been very interested in law. I was able to pursue this interest in the THWS Senate. We dealt a lot with examination regulations there – after all, students need to have a regulated path to success, which we established there. In addition, the Senate actively participates in presidential elections and new appointments. As the Senate, we make up 50 per cent of the university council and therefore have a great deal of responsibility.
What do you appreciate about working as a professor?
Definitely the freedom of teaching. I am given the broad field of measurement technology to teach, but I am completely free in how I teach and what I research. I have learned that teaching is a reflection of your personality – you can only be successful if you put your heart into it and are emotionally involved in the course. I live for measurement technology, systems theory, and control engineering. That's what I like.
One can sense your passion for teaching.
Absolutely, I'm living my dream. I've always enjoyed participating in didactic training courses to understand how to impart knowledge. It's important to teach students skills, i.e. a combination of knowledge and abilities, so that they can put their knowledge into practice. It's fortunate that we're at a university of applied sciences here. For me, it has turned out to be exactly the right thing because we work in a very practice-oriented and interdisciplinary way here.
In order to intensify practical application, you have redesigned the laboratory internship for your students, correct?
It was important to me that the students supervise an experiment from A to Z in their lab practical, i.e. from planning to results. That's why there weren't many small individual experiments anymore, but one twelve-hour experiment in three four-hour individual sessions. A narrative was built around it, as is the case in real engineering work, and at the end, a report had to be submitted and discussed. This was a bit more demanding, but as a result, the exams at the end of the semester were passed with good results.
Based on your many years of university experience, what advice would you give to students?
I usually advise my engineering students to be a little humble when they start their professional careers. They should by no means be submissive and should also bring a certain amount of egoism to the table – but after their studies, they come from the abstract side. Only together with the practical side, i.e. with people who usually have much more professional experience, will their work be successful.
The Dean of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Professor Dr. Johannes Paulus, said in his speech at your farewell party, "Professor Wilke knows everyone and knows everything." How did that come about?
It's actually quite simple, you just have to approach people – from the caretaker to the president's secretary. I know that I have an extroverted personality and enjoy getting to know people face to face. Sometimes I would drop by other offices outside of normal working hours. But that's how you develop good connections, and it helps when you need something yourself. I think it's important to get to know people beyond the professional context. It's similar with the students – thanks to the intensive time spent together, for example during the laboratory practicals, I not only knew the students by name, but also their backgrounds. That's what being a professor is also about.
After more than 20 years at THWS, what are your plans now?
I'm still pretty busy and active in honorary positions and support associations. As chairman of the Lower Franconian District Association of the VDI, I now also represent the views of the sciences with the task of promoting technical education. In this work, I am of course still closely connected to THWS.
This interview was conducted by a student of the master's degree programme in Trade Journalism and Corporate Communications.