Prof. Katalin Ligeti in September 2017 took up the office of Dean of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance. At the end of her first academic year in office, she looks back at some of the highlights and key developments of the past year.
What were some key developments of 2017-2018?
I started my mandate as Dean by strengthening the management team. We added Prof. Anke Müßig as Vice-Dean for Teaching. Prof. Tibor Neugebauer was appointed Head of the Faculty Research Committee with a special focus on developing a research strategy for the FDEF. Leading a Faculty of this size is teamwork and I am happy that my colleagues accepted the invitation to support me in this office. There were some significant changes at University level, including the appointment of a new Rector, Prof. Stéphane Pallage, the signing of the 2018-2021 four-year plan and the passing of the new University law by the Luxembourg parliament. All of these developments will also shape the FDEF over the coming years.
How do you balance growth and consolidation?
We have made efforts to streamline existing processes and introduce new ones where needed. Our new financial controller will continue playing an important role in this undertaking as well as the head of faculty administration who will join us in the autumn of 2018. There is a University-wide effort underway in response to some of the shortcomings identified in 2017. At the same time, our researchers were able to attract significant external funding, for example for a new doctoral training unit in law as well research projects in real estate finance and cryptocurrencies. We signed new agreements with partners, such as ESSEC Business School, the European Parliament and the LHoFT. We welcomed hundreds of participants to conferences and lecture series. We have to keep moving forward.
What achievements are you particularly proud of?
It is a real pleasure for me to see our junior researchers doing well and receiving the recognition they deserve. Fatima Chaouche was chosen by students among the best teachers at the University, winning one of the six Teaching Awards for 2017. Michal Burzynski, who is a postdoctoral researcher at CREA, won the Polish Prime Minister’s Award for his doctoral dissertation. Jérôme Dugast, a postdoc at the LSF, had two of his papers accepted by top-tier journals and will take up a junior professorship at Université Paris-Dauphine in September. And this is only a small snapshot of the achievements of our junior researchers. They are a credit to the Faculty and all of us are incredibly proud of what they accomplish during their time with us.
How do you combine national with international relevance?
Our mission as a University is of course to bring added value to Luxembourg and contribute to the country’s “knowledge economy”. Many of our graduates choose to start their careers in Luxembourg and they are an asset to the local labour market. However, those who go abroad will there become ambassadors for our University and help us attract talented students from around the world. It’s a win-win. Our research is rooted in Luxembourg. In law, for example, our researchers have contributed to important reforms on company law and the development of Luxembourg’s space resources law. We work with local partners, in particular the financial sector and the business community. But we also have diverse international partner universities. We work together with the Luxembourg government and their development co-operations with Mali and Laos. Our Faculty has become an important partner for the Universities of Bamako and the National University of Laos in providing resources and expertise in teaching and research. In addition, many of our researchers hold visiting professorships abroad or work in international research consortia. There is a lively exchange on a global level. Luxembourg is a small country and it is in the country’s DNA to seek alliances and look beyond its borders. This is also true for its University.
How have you experienced your first year as Dean?
It has been a very interesting first year but also a very busy one. We were able to celebrate several Faculty milestones, such as the 10-year anniversary of our Master in Entrepreneurship and Innovation in collaboration with the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, the 15-year anniversary of the LSF, as well as the arrival of the very first cohort of students of the Master in Logistics and Supply Chain Management. At the same time we kicked off strategy processes for the development of our research and teaching in the future. As a first outcome we will introduce a new executive education programme dedicated to owning and investing in art in 2019. Moving from professor to Dean, I have gained a new perspective on the Faculty as a whole and its role within the University and the wider community in Luxembourg. We have responded to some urgent challenges this past year but our mission remains to deliver excellence in research and teaching, to be a reliable partner and fulfill our social responsibility as a public institution.