Last week I had the chance to participate in the KTUR Summer School.
It was really an accident how I found out about it. While scrolling through my inbox, an email from my university caught my eye: "KTUR Summer School for Entrepreneurship – if you're interested in starting your own startup, feel free to apply!" It immediately sparked my curiosity. I had never joined a summer school before and the fact that this one would take place across three different cities made it even more exciting.
Without overthinking, I applied, and a few weeks later I found myself packing my bags.
So the journey began in Freiburg, where we spent the first two days. Nobody knew each other, so we started with warm-up activities, played some introduction games, and began presenting startup ideas before forming groups. Since I did not have an idea of my own, I decided to join the group Atratze.
The challenge we want to solve is fascinating: transporting air turbines to difficult terrains such as mountains. Using trucks is often nearly impossible, as it requires destroying forests and clearing paths. As an alternative, our group proposed using zeppelins as ecofriendly transportation carriers.
I know, the idea sounds a bit crazy, right? How on earth would it be possible? Is it even realistic to carry such heavy loads with a zeppelin? Those were exactly the questions running through my head when I first heard about the idea.
Still, I decided to join the project because I wanted to step outside of my comfort zone. During hackathons, I had mainly worked on digital projects that involved no physical products at all. This time, I had the chance to dive into engineering challenges and explore what it actually takes to develop a solution beyond software.
After forming groups, our first working day ended with a city tour around Freiburg. The city is calm and surrounded by forests, giving it a peaceful vibe. I could easily imagine going on some amazing hikes here.
First day in Freiburg
On the next day, we continued working on our idea and attended lectures and talks from successful founders. These talks were very insightful, especially because they showed us how many obstacles there are on the way to building a company and how founders overcome them. It also became clear how much effort and persistence you need to make a startup work. Hearing such stories was truly inspiring for me.
The following two days we spent in Basel. There we continued developing our project and had time after class to explore the city. One of my favorite moments was the night stroll we took together. I have always loved the vibe of walking through a city at night, talking, laughing and sharing jokes with people who had been strangers just a few days before. These bonding moments often go unnoticed in the moment, but they become the memories you cherish later on.
Night Stroll through Basel
On our last day, we spent the time in Strasbourg. It was pitching time and we showcased everything we had been working on over the past week. There were some tough questions about feasibility, which we had expected and prepared for. After some waiting time, the result was announced and we didn't win. But for me, it was never about winning; it was about having fun, making friends, and learning something new - and I definitely did all of that!
Another unexpected highlight of the summer school was brushing up on my French. I hadn’t spoken it since high school and even though my skills were barely understandable, everyone was so kind, patiently explaining and helping me. My favorite phrase that I learned was "mon gars sûrs", which loosely translates to "my guy". I liked it so much that I kept saying it all the time.
By the end of the week, someone had the idea to write that phrase on a T-shirt and gave it to me. Everyone signed it and left their best wishes. I was deeply touched, and it has truly become the most precious T-shirt I own.
Mon Gars Sûrs T-shirt
What made the summer school even more special was the incredible atmosphere. Everyone was kind, open and supportive, creating a positive and inspiring environment. I’ve never had the chance to do an Erasmus semester but this experience probably comes close.
Last Day Vibes
So how does a summer school feel like? For me, it was pure fun, filled with laughter and new friendships that I will truly cherish.
P.S. If you are a fellow summer school participant, thank you for making this experience so memorable! This will always be one of my favorite memories, and all I can say is: "Merci beaucoup, mes amis!"