Our Team in Kleve

Our Team in Kamp-Lintfort

• Jordi Higuera

• Aida Darisavi

• Emma Küpfer

• Maziar Layeghkar

• Lisa Hartmann-Gonzalez

• Aylin Ayik

• Maximilian Biskup

• Paola Andrea Teubner Diaz

• Ricardo Fernandes

• Michelle Urbigkeit

• Ana Maria Rivas Sandoval

• Melad Elias

• Louisa van den Bosch

• Lukas Kahlau

• Michael Völk

• Natalia Cuesta Fuentes

• Samantha Geis

• Denyse Eitner

• Dorina Rakotz

• Youssef El Mekkawy

• Anshu Roy

Jordi Higuera

Hello! My name is Jordi Higuera and I come from Sant Vicenç de Castellet, a little town next to Barcelona, Spain. I am currently studying Mechatronics Systems Engineering. I speak Catalan, Spanish, English and German. My hobbies include travelling, sports, music and above all hiking! I love mountains!

My motivation to become a tutor has been growing up through the semesters that I have been here. During this time, I have realized what both the students and the university need and I wanted to help as much as I could to make this place a little bit better. I was also interested in the opportunity to work in another field that is completely opposite to my studies, to get in touch with social problems and being able to provide guidance to solve them.

Do not hesitate to ask us, we do not bite!

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Aida Darisavi

I am Aida Darisavi. I am from Iran. I study Msc Mechanical engineering. I was Captain for 2018 HSRW Submarine team. I was a member of HSRW MINT Girls and HSRW FSR technology and bionics (Guardians of the Faculty).  I can speak Farsi and English. I am learning German and Arabic. 

I enjoy swimming, dancing, cooking, DIY, jogging, working in intercultural environments, learning about new cultures, new languages. I believe in working smart and hard. I enjoy helping individuals with student-life hurdles.

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Emma Küpfer

My name is Emma, I am 21 years old and from the south of Germany, close to the swiss and the french border.

After high school I started my backpacking trip and explored Southeast Asia, Australia and worked in New Zealand for a while.

I speak german, english and spanish and I am a International Relations student here in Kleve.

My hobbies are playing volleyball, meeting friends, listening to music and travelling.

I just started as a tutor in the Welcome center but I am very motivated to help and look for solutions for any kind of problems. Moving to a new country, especially Germany with all its bureaucracy can be very overwhelming, so feel free to ask!

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Maziar Layeghkar

I am Maziar Layeghkar. Since 2015, I moved to Germany in order to continue my education in Mechanical Engineering. As an Iranian, I speak Farsi, also English, but I am still learning German and Turkish.

As for hobbies, motion pictures as well as politics - two themes that can alter me to a talkative person, books, music, cooking my discovered recipes and partying. Last but not least, swimming, climbing and driving.

Since having a house contract would be such a solver for oncoming bureaucratic barriers, my main concern is to help freshers find decent accommodation. Another aim is to encourage students to participate in events in view to integrate them smoothly into the new ambiance.

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Lisa Hartmann-Gonzalez

Hello! My name is Lisa Hartmann González. You might wonder why I have two last names. That is because my mother is from Tenerife, a little Spanish island, and my father is German and I was born and raised in Germany, in a little town close to Bonn. I speak German, Spanish, English and French and I am always happy to learn a new word in a different language! I also enjoy travelling and discovering new places, dancing, sailing and playing cards with friends.

I am a tutor at the Welcome Centre because I know how challenging it can be adapting to a new place and how it feels to be disorientated (we moved from a village to a town, I changed high school after grade 10 and I went abroad to Canada for several months). Now, I would like to make you smile again after having assisted you with any question you might have.

So, do not hesitate to ask us!

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Aylin Ayik

Hi! My name is Aylin and I am currently studying sustainable tourism. I was born in Germany but I have Turkish roots. My absolute favorite hobby is to learn new languages and I would consider myself as an active Person. I enjoy doing Sports and discovering new countries. My Motivation to become a tutor was to help students to connect and communicate with each other. My Job in the Welcome Center allows me to be engaged in Student life of our beautiful and diverse university. I am looking forward to help anyone struggling with Student life. 

Our Team is here to be asked, so do not hesitate to ask!

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Maximilian Biskup

Hey my name is Maximilian Biskup. I am from Meerbusch, Germany. I study International Business and Social Sciences at the faculty Society and Economics.

I love to play music and be active and if you are someone who with similar interests I can guide you to get more involved in these activities like choir, music room, rock climbing or gym.

I became a tutor because I know a lot of students struggle with meeting new people and getting involved with student affairs and organizations. My objective is to help students to figure that out.

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Paola Andrea Teubner Diaz

Hola, Hallo, Hello, Hoi! My name is Paola Andrea Teubner Díaz, long name right?! I was born in Bogota, the capital of Colombia, but was raised in Barranquilla. At the age of 12 my family moved to Mexico, later to Germany, followed by the UK, then the Netherlands and now I am back to Germany! I could be considered a nomad!

I speak German, Spanish, English and Dutch. In Kleve I study International Relations, linked to the Faculty of Society and Economics. My hobbies are dancing to all kinds of music, reading romance and fiction books, photographing and editing pictures!

I am a tutor at the Welcome Center, because I am a very people-oriented kind of person. I like meeting new people, share my experiences and enjoy to be there for other students. One more thing: If you smiled at least once a day, then it was a good day, no matter what! Cheers!

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Ricardo Fernandes

My name is Ricardo Fernandes. I am Brazilian, raised in the wonderful Rio de Janeiro, now living in Kleve for my master's degree in Sustainable Development Management. I am kind of a language freak and I speak Portuguese, English, Spanish and French, and I am currently improving my German and learning Italian. Just don't learn more at the moment for a matter of time.

I am a tutor at the Welcome Center as I appreciate the assistance I received when I landed at HSRW, and now I wish to help other students in retribution. May you have any issue and are willing to find someone to speak out, I am more than open to listen to you and do my best to help. By the way, as a proud LGBTTQI+ myself, I am always standing up for this community, as well as against gender, racial, social and any kind of discrimination and inequality. 

Ah, before I forget: good food is always our best friend!

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Michelle Urbigkeit

Hi, my name is Michelle Urbigkeit and I'm from Düsseldorf, Germany. I love learning new languages and have tried out several, for example, French, Spanish, Dutch and my newest Russian. I wanted to work as a tutor for the Welcome Centre to get to know even more interesting people from our university, because I enjoy the diversity on  our campus. I am studying Gender & Diversity and I am looking forward to helping anyone struggling with student life.

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Ana Maria Rivas Sandoval

Hello everyone! My name is Ana Maria Rivas Sandoval, I’m from Cali-Colombia and few months ago I moved to Germany to study Gender and Diversity degree. I consider myself a very social person and I really enjoy the possibility of learning new languages. I speak Spanish, English, German and willing to learn more as possible. Two years ago, I had the opportunity to have my exchange year after high school in Germany doing a volunteer with refugees, this experience focused and shaped my desires of helping people and I still want to continue learning and helping in different ways. That’s why I’m honored to be part of the welcome center tutors and be able a support for all the students that might need someone to support in their student life struggles. 

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Melad Elias

Hello! My name is Melad Elias, I come from a city named Bethlehem in Palestine. I’m in my first semester of International Relations. I can speak Arabic, English, and German. Some of my hobbies are In-door climbing, Model United Nations and a bit of interest in Programming.

I became a tutor because I went through the experience of how students feel when they first move to Germany and start University. They encounter a lot of issues including residency, accommodation, social life and everything else that will cause a lot of pressure. I want to be a part of the Welcome Center to contribute to making it easier for students to integrate and become a part of our University’s community.

Feel free to approach me!

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Louisa van den Bosch

My name is Louisa van den Bosch and I am studying Sustainable Development Management. I was born and raised in this Lower Rhine area of Germany. After some years in the USA, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Bavaria and Berlin it is pretty nice to come back here. I can make good conversation in German, English and Spanish. I can also speak a little French, basic Indonesian, and even more basic Kannada.
As a Rhenish cheerful soul, I enjoy cooking sessions with friends, dancing, YouTube karaoke, travelling to new places, and watching documentaries. I am a fan of pigs and talking about toilets (there is way more about it than one might think) makes me happy. I became a tutor because I have been lost many times during my stays abroad. Thankfully, there were always amazing people who helped me out! So I want to be that person now, assisting in making this university, city, country, culture a little less overwhelming.

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Lukas Kahlau

Hello there! My name is Lukas Kahlau and I am a local of the lower rhine area. I am currently studying Sustainable Agriculture on campus Kleve and I speak German, English and Spanish, hopefully fluent when I finish my studies!
Before I started studying I travelled to several continents and countries, which made me appreciate little details of all the different views  and opinions people have in this world!
Overall I like an active lifestyle and have passions like mountainbiking, longboarding, surfing, hiking and so on. I guess you see where this list is going.

I feel, that the task of being a welcome center tutor is a great opportunity to dive a bit into the field of social related work, which is not given in my studies. Apart from the fact that I like to meet, communicate with and comfort people, I am really fascinated and always eager to learn about what drives us humans, what makes us do the things we do and how we can become more happy and content!
That is why I am looking forward to get to know you, will do my best to help you and try to connect you to others on and off the campus!

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Louisa Niermann

Hi,

My name is Louisa Niermann, I am from Germany and I started working for the Welcome Centre in 2019. I came to Kleve in October 2017 to study International Relations here at Rhine-Waal University.

I am also active in youth work, took part in various international training courses and have experience in working with German authorities.

The Welcome Centre is a place where you can always find support and I will be happy to help you, no matter whether you need assistance with bureaucratic procedures, have questions regarding university life, or just need someone to talk.

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Natalia Cuesta Fuentes

Hi! My name is Natalia Cuesta. I am from Granada, the city of the Alhambra, in the southern and sunny part in Spain. I love learning new languages. I can speak Spanish and English. Currently I am improving my German and I can also speak a little bit of French. The thing that I enjoy the most is travelling and photography. I also like cooking and the art of make up. I have always been interested in economics and politics, moreover I take care of the environment. Therefore International Relations is my ideal degree.

When I arrived, I had some difficulties and the Welcome Centre helped me to find solutions. I became part of the team to help with the same passion that I experienced myself.

If you need any kind of help, just come and talk to me.

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Michael Völk

Welcome to HSRW and welcome to Germany. My name is Michael and I’m studying Sustainable Tourism. I was born in Germany and raised in the south of Spain. After school, I went travelling for some time, mainly in Australia, Japan and Indonesia. Other than my mother tongue, I speak Spanish, French, English and bits of Indonesian, Italian and Japanese. If you teach me some words in your language I’ll be very happy. 

I became a tutor as I hope to be able to help you, if you have any questions and help students to have a great time on campus and in Germany. What I’ve learned here is that you can talk to anybody and you’ll always find someone willing to help if you ask them. Don’t be afraid of failing, just as Einstein said: “A person who never made a mistake, never tried anything new.” Having that in mind is very motivating and might give you a good start. See you soon!!

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Samantha Geis

My name is Samantha Geis and I'm 20 years old. I was born and raised in Germany. More precisely in Aschaffenburg, a small city in Bavaria.  So my mother language is German. I can also speak English and a little bit French. Last year in september I moved to Kamp-Lintfort to study business psychology.

Before I started studying I lived a few months in Dallas, Texas. I know how hard it can be to request a visa or to get along in a foreign country at all. During this time I found a lot of new friends who helped me to settle down in America. Now it's my turn to give something back. I want to help international students to find a second home in Germany without any problems. When I came back home I worked in several social institutions like a refugee hostel, an addiction clinic or in a prison. I played concerts with my mandolin or guitar for the occupants of these constitutions. I have a passion for music. Additionally I like to have interesting conversations and meet people from all around the world. I'm one of the new employees at the welcome centre and i'm looking forward to supporting the well-practised team.

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Denyse Eitner

My name is Denyse Eitner. Although my name wouldn’t bespeak it I’m half-Italian, but I was born and raised in Germany. I can speak German, English and a little bit Italian. My hometown is Siegen, so KaLi is very new for me because I just live here since October 2017. So far, I really appreciate the “Ruhrpott” because it’s not always raining and it’s very plain compared to all the hills of Siegen.

I’m currently studying Arbeits- und Organisationspsychologie at the HSRW in Kamp-Lintfort. For a long period of time it was my wish to study Psychology because I think it’s fascinating to know how human brains as well as their interacting among each other works and what an impact the surrounding world has on oneself. I really want to use my study to help other people with all kinds of problems as much as possible, that’s the reason why I’m excited about my job as a tutor. I’m looking forward to working with other students and improve my interpersonal communication skills.

In my spare time I love reading books, having fun with my friends, listening to music (I am really into rock-music) and of course watching all kinds of series on Netflix. Additionally, I really love travelling. So, after finishing my Bachelor’s degree I want to go on a world tour.

Whenever you need help with something, feel free to ask us and we’ll do the best we can!

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Dorina Rakotz

Hello, my name is Dorina Rakotz and I am 22 years old. I was born and raised in Rheinberg, a small village next to Kamp-Lintfort. My mother language is German and I speak English fluently. I can also speak a little bit of French and Spanish. Since 2017 I am studying Mobility and Logistics.

Before university, I spent a year abroad in Australia as an Au-Pair and after that I travelled a few countries in Asia. That time gave me lots of experience with different cultures, which is what I like as my job as a Tutor as well. In my free time I like to do sports, meet friends and do crafts.

I joined the Welcome Centre in March 2019 and I am happy to help you out if you have any problems or questions about your life in Germany. 

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