This year, six researchers from Graz are receiving their doctorates “sub auspiciis Praesidentis rei publicae” (i.e. under the auspices of the President of the Republic): Computer scientists Barbara Gigerl, Andrea Pferscher and Fikret Bašić (all TU Graz), mathematicians Andreas Habring (University of Graz) and Reinhard Lüftenegger (TU Graz) and chemist Andreas Windischbacher (University of Graz) were honoured on Friday, 14 March 2025 for their outstanding achievements at school and university, including their doctorates. This is an honour that only very few graduates of Austrian universities receive.
On behalf of the Federal President, University of Graz Rector Peter Riedler and Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) Rector Horst Bischof performed the graduation ceremony in the Great Hall of the Old University of Graz. Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen will personally present the Ring of Honour with the Federal Eagle of the Republic of Austria to the graduates at a reception in the Vienna Hofburg on 17 March.
“A doctorate sub auspiciis is a special accolade for graduates who have achieved the best results throughout their studies. My warmest congratulations!” said Peter Riedler, Rector of the University of Graz. “At the same time, this ceremony honours scientific excellence that responsibly serves society. I am delighted that our university offers an excellent breeding ground for specially talented people in research and teaching who use their knowledge and skills to build a good future for us and future generations.”
“Our joint graduation ceremony emphasises the close cooperation between TU Graz and the University of Graz in research and teaching,” said TU Graz Rector Horst Bischof. “For many years, we have been combining our strengths, which complement each other perfectly. Together, we are creating in the science location Graz an inspiring environment with international appeal, where talented people can develop their full potential. A shining example of this are the six young scientists whose extraordinary achievements we are celebrating today and whom I would like to warmly congratulate.”
“As State Governor of Styria, I would like to congratulate all doctoral graduates on their impressive success. The doctorate sub auspiciis is the most outstanding achievement of an academic career and one of which you can be extremely proud”, said State Governor Mario Kunasek, who had to cancel his attendance at the ceremony due to illness, in a personal message delivered by State Councillor Claudia Holzer. “With talent, diligence and also a great deal of patience, you have achieved your exceptional scholastic and academic achievements and have represented the Graz university location in an exemplary manner in the public eye. I wish you all the very best for your professional and private futures!”
Biographical sketches of the doctoral candidates in alphabetical order
Fikret Bašić (TU Graz)
Fikret Bašić, born in 1994 in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, has been interested in computer-based systems since childhood. After leaving school, he studied electrical engineering at the University of Bihać, specialising in computer science. During his bachelor’s degree, he received several awards and scholarships, such as the Adil Zulfikarpašić Foundation scholarship for the best student at the University of Bihać in 2014/2015. Fikret Bašić moved to TU Graz to study for his MSc in computer science. During this time, he received an ITalent South East scholarship from IV Steiermark and worked on two projects in the field of smart sensors and simulation as well as at the Know Center, where he deepened his knowledge of data science and machine learning. After a brief period at CISC Semiconductors, he returned to TU Graz for his doctorate. He wrote his PhD thesis on “Enabling secure and wireless battery management systems” as part of a collaboration with NXP Semiconductors. Fikret Bašić received the Hans List Prize in 2023 and the Prize for Scientist of the Year from the Society of Bosnian Academics in Austria in 2024. He is currently a postdoc at the Institute of Technical Informatics at TU Graz and is working on the security of embedded and wireless networked systems.
Barbara Gigerl (TU Graz)
Barbara Gigerl was born in Deutschlandsberg in 1994 and graduated from HTBLA Kaindorf. As a teenager, she enjoyed writing poems and short stories, and this creativity still serves her well today in her job as a computer scientist: “IT security is about making a system secure as efficiently as possible, which often requires savvy approaches and creative solutions,” says Barbara Gigerl. She began her studies at TU Graz in 2014, completing two subjects in parallel, achieving first a BSc and later an MSc in Software Engineering and Management. Her MSc theses each won prizes: in 2019, she received the State Prize of the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research for her thesis “Automated analysis of speculation windows in spectre attacks”; one year later, she won one of the Technology and Society Forum’s Sponsorship Awards for her second thesis “Utility of transfer entropy for the extraction of influence networks”. “In everyday life, we use IT systems all the time without thinking about how much work goes into ensuring that they are actually secure,” says Barbara Gigerl, who conducted research into how embedded devices can be protected against side-channel attacks used by attackers to steal cryptographic keys and sensitive data as part of her doctorate. Since September 2024, Gigerl has been working for Apple in Cambridge (UK) as a design verification engineer.
Andreas Habring (University of Graz)
Andreas Habring grew up in Grödig near Salzburg. Even as a student at a technical secondary school (HTL) specialising in mechanical engineering, he felt the need to get to the bottom of things and dispel doubts. After enrolling at TU Graz to study physics and maths, it was the latter subject that particularly captivated him: “What is mathematically proven once is certain forever.” During his MSc, Habring became interested in mathematical image processing, which he then devoted himself to in his doctoral thesis at the Department of Mathematics and Scientific Computing at the University of Graz. His dissertation was supervised by Martin Holler. Since December 2024, the scientist has been conducting research as a postdoc at the Institute of Visual Computing at TU Graz in Thomas Pock’s working group. The aim is to optimise the quality of imaging using mathematical and statistical methods. Areas of application include magnetic resonance imaging and computer tomography. Habring does not tie his enthusiasm for his subject to a specific topic: “I generally enjoy puzzling out difficult tasks, but I’m fascinated by the elegance, precision and exactness of maths.” Habring has also been studying law since 2022. “Applying the law is – at least in theory – a bit like doing a mathematical proof.” He then adds: “Law, democracy or political issues I can discuss with my girlfriend or my relatives. With maths this is usually not the case.”
Reinhard Lüftenegger (TU Graz)
Reinhard Lüftenegger was born in Salzburg. As a teenager, he aspired to a career as a professional racing cyclist, but then graduated from the HTBLA Salzburg, specialising in electrical engineering, before going on to study engineering and philosophy at the University of Salzburg. However, the aesthetics and harmony of maths soon persuaded Reinhard Lüftenegger to change his subject. After completing a BSc in Mathematics, he turned to cryptography as the foundation of IT security towards the end of his MSc. A suggestion from his professor Peter Hellekalek drew Reinhard Lüftenegger’s attention to the research focus on cryptography at TU Graz, which turned out to be a decisive factor in his future career. From 2019 to 2023, Lüftenegger worked at the Institute of Information Security on the design and security analysis of a new generation of cryptographic algorithms that are suitable for zero-knowledge proofs, among other things. “Christian Rechberger was an important mentor and a great teacher, both professionally and personally,” says Reinhard Lüftenegger, looking back on his doctoral studies.
Andrea Pferscher (TU Graz)
Born in Feldbach in 1994 and raised in the municipality of Markt Hartmannsdorf, Andrea Pferscher has enjoyed solving puzzles and maths problems since she was a child. Very soon she was writing her own programmes on the computer, which she used to tackle more complex tasks. She graduated from the Federal Commercial Academy in Feldbach, specialising in information and communication technology, and then studied software engineering and management at TU Graz. After completing her BSc, Andrea Pferscher specialised in the security and correctness of IT systems in her MSc. She completed her doctorate in Bernhard Aichernig’s “Formal methods” research group with her thesis “Automata learning for security testing and analysis in networked environments”. Today, Andrea Pferscher is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oslo working on formal methods and developing digital twins to model the effects of climate change on the Oslo Fjord and the transmission of diseases.
Andreas Windischbacher (University of Graz)
Andreas Windischbacher was born in Graz in 1994. When he decided to study at university after his matriculation exams, he mainly followed the advice of his family and teachers. “Because the natural sciences offered the prospect of secure jobs, but physics wasn’t my thing at the time and studying maths seemed a bit dry, I chose chemistry,” he admits candidly. Or perhaps the Chemistry Olympiad course at the BG/BRG Oeverseegasse secondary school laid the foundation after all? During his NAWI Graz studies at the University of Graz and TU Graz, Windischbacher focused primarily on physical and theoretical chemistry. “In these areas, you can simulate experiments on the computer without the risk of burning down a laboratory,” he explains with humour. He wrote his doctoral thesis at the Institute of Physics at the University of Graz under the supervision of Peter Puschnig. Windischbacher has been a postdoc in Puschnig's working group since January 2024. As part of a project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, he is calculating the interaction of light with squaraine molecules. Squaraines are dyes that are of interest for light-based applications in photovoltaics, photosensor technology and biomedicine. The aim of the project is to gain deeper insights into the optical properties of these molecules.
More information
The sub auspiciis praesidentis doctorate is an award for outstanding achievements at school and university studies. Sub auspiciis doctoral students complete all upper secondary school classes, the Austrian Matura (general qualification for university entrance or matriculation exam) and their studies, including a doctorate, with excellence and prove themselves worthy of distinction through their behaviour both at the university and outside.
