Cornel Thill Educator of the Year 2023-2024
The boards of Variscopic, Froude and Leeghwater, the ME study associations, asked their fellow students to choose the best ME Educator of the 2023-2024 academic year. The nominations enable students to express their appreciation for the teaching provided by a specific lecturer.
Cornel Thill from the Department of Maritime and Transport Technology (MTT) is this year's Educator of the Year in the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. Thill is part of the Ship Design, Production & Operations section and teaches courses such as “Hydrostatics,” “Future Marine Propulsion Systems” and “Advanced Course in Resistance and Propulsion.” In addition to his work in teaching and research, he is a member of TU Delft's Works Council.
When congratulated with the title and asked for an interview, his first cheerful response was: "It hasn’t really sunk in yet." Thill thinks it’s quite a special title to receive.
19 years of classroom experience
Cornel Thill studied Mechanical Engineering in Aachen, with advanced studies (now called a Master's degree) in Maritime Engineering. During his studies, he applied for a position as a Student Assistant but the lecturers within the programme thought that he had the potential to teach. This resulted in him giving lectures alongside his studies.
He has now been teaching for 19 years and his extensive experience has not gone unnoticed by the students in the lecture halls. Survey results described Thill as helpful, approachable, understanding, humorous, passionate, clear and structured.
Cornel Thill
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Maritime and Transport Technology
Ship Design, Production & Operations
The students chose Cornel Thill mainly because of his passion for his subject. He is always willing to help students who are struggling and does so without making them feel bad about themselves for having difficulty understanding something.
Elza van Vliet, Education Commissioner of Scheepsbouwkundig Gezelschap William Froude
No one-size-fits-all approach
Thill uses an interesting turn of phrase to explain how every student is unique: "You cannot ask a tiger, a bird and a snail to climb a tree in the same way and at the same speed." In other words, everyone learns in their own way.
He does not use a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to exams either. "The method of testing should suit the subject you teach. You learn and train for an unexpected real-life situation, not for an exam question." That’s why he looks not only at the binary outcome of a calculation but also at the thought process that preceded it.
He makes time for every student and helps them where he can. He even helps them with subjects he doesn’t teach.
Maritime Engineering student
What does Cornel Thill like most about teaching?
The answer to this question is “transferring knowledge and, in particular, stimulating curiosity in students. If I could add up all the pennies that drop in the classroom, I would be a rich man. But it’s enough for me that those pennies do drop," says Thill.
The transfer of knowledge is a wonderful and fascinating thing. It provides more happiness than having a very expensive car in the driveway.
Cornel Thill
Once all faculties have named their Educator of the Year, an election will take place for the 'TU Delft 2024’s Educator of the Year'.