Along with the award comes 500,000 kroner, with 300,000 kroner going to Dania Academy and 200,000 kroner to Vashanth Selvadurai himself. But first and foremost, it is a recognition of an impressive work and teaching marked by great dedication.
"I am very happy and proud to receive the award, and I will celebrate it. But what has left the biggest impression on me throughout the whole process is actually that the students were the ones who initially nominated me for the Lecturer of the Year award at Dania. That recognition and attention surprised and touched me," emphasizes Vash.
I put myself in the recipient's shoes.
In fact, an overwhelming number of students nominated Vash for the Lecturer of the Year award. This is especially impressive considering that Vash has only been employed at Dania for two years. He calls his triumph a team victory, as he has been very impressed by the support he has received from his colleagues since he started:
'From the beginning, I felt I was met with optimism and positivity whenever I took initiative. I have received great feedback, and I’ve experienced a lot of support in many areas, which has given me the courage to explore new possibilities in teaching,' Vash explains.
In the end, however, it is Vash himself who is responsible for teaching and for conveying his professional knowledge to the Marketing Management students in Randers. He does this with a clear awareness of what the students should gain from his lessons:
'I always try to put myself in the students' shoes and think about how I can motivate them and what they should take away from my teaching. But I also try to engage with them and talk about things unrelated to the lessons. Because if I get on the same wavelength with them, they are more receptive when they need to learn something new,' Vash points out.
More of a mentor than a teacher
It’s not easy to get Vash to praise himself, even though he now has every reason to. But when pressed, he points to a few things he believes may have made a difference for the students:
'It can be both a good and a bad thing, but I’m a perfectionist in many areas. I dedicate a lot of time to understanding things thoroughly, and I’m meticulous in my preparation. I also think the students notice that I try to understand the generation they represent, to become aware of the challenges they face,' Vash says with a disarming smile.
Vash sees himself more as a mentor than a teacher. Understandably so – it's in the relationships where he mentors, motivates, and guides his students that he feels he makes a difference. But this requires him to engage with the students on their level, and that’s one of the things he excels at.
In the students' nomination of Vash as Lecturer of the Year, words like engagement, dedication, high level of knowledge, and involvement keep coming up. The students feel that he 'does everything he can, and more, to ensure we succeed,' and it's hard to receive a more flattering recommendation than that.
A generous gift is on the way
It takes a lot of energy to start a new teaching job. That's why, over the past few years, Vash's life partner has shouldered most of the responsibilities at their home in Aalborg. And there's plenty to do, as their household also includes a little boy, 1 ½ years old:
'I owe a lot to my life partner, so she will receive a generous gift when the prize money is paid out. Beyond that, the money will help us move forward in life — maybe it will go toward a down payment on a house or something practical. It certainly won’t be anything extravagant,' Vash concludes.
More about Vash
For those who think Vash only excels as a teacher and has no time for anything else, think again. With 138,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, 119,000 followers on Facebook, starring roles in several feature films, and music downloaded millions of times, he has also achieved significant success in these areas.