One year in office

University Rector: “I wouldn’t give myself grades”

Veronika Sexl has been head of the University of Innsbruck since March 1, 2023.

(Bild: Johanna Birbaumer)

Veronika Sexl has been the first female rector of Innsbruck University for a year. In an interview with the "Tiroler Krone" newspaper, she takes stock. She sees the performance agreement as the next big challenge that lies ahead. She is satisfied with the number of graduates each year.

"Krone": You have been in office for a year. What grade would you give yourself?
Veronika Sexl: I think that's a question that I can't answer, but that others have to answer. I'm the wrong person to ask. I think we've managed a lot of things quite well. I wouldn't give myself marks. That's not my place.

Is there a project that started during your first year that you would describe as a flagship project?
Yes, I would like to name two things. One that was very important to us was that we improved the conditions for our employees. We have put together a large package. On the one hand, we have increased the subsidy for public transport tickets and for the climate ticket, and we have introduced meal subsidies. These will now come into effect on March 1. In the interests of sustainability, we have also released the interest-free loan for bicycles.

We have an average of around 4,000 graduates a year. Examination activity is increasing. Students are more focused.

Veronika Sexl

The second lighthouse project: in the area of research, we have implemented the "Clusters of Excellence". Last year, five research areas were defined and implemented in Austria, which represent Austria or Austria's outstanding research areas. The University of Innsbruck is involved in three of them. One is led by our physicists, the quantum researchers, together with Vienna and Linz. We are particularly proud of this. The second is about replacing fossil fuels and the third, in the field of humanities, is an attempt to rethink the European-Asian region historically and geographically.

Veronika Sexl in front of the main university with the new campus in the background.

(Bild: Johanna Birbaumer)

The university is ranked between 301st and 350th in the Times Higher Education Ranking. How do you rate that?
Basically, I am of course very proud that the university is ranked among the top 350 universities. About 2000 are rated, but there are 20,000 educational institutions in total. So I would say that we are right up there. When it comes to the ranking within Austria, we are usually in second or third place.

You are also responsible for staff. Are all positions filled and what is the situation regarding junior staff and the proportion of women?
At a university, not all positions will ever be filled. We have around 4,000 researchers and around 1,400 junior researchers with a proportion of women of 43 to 45 percent. We are not yet in such a good position with female professors, where we have 28 percent. We will continue to promote this. We have a very high employment rate in Tyrol and it is not at all easy to find well-qualified female staff - including administrative staff.

The better we are funded, the better the infrastructure, the better the research opportunities.

Veronika Sexl

What about the number of graduates?
We have an average of around 4000 a year. We can see that examination activity is increasing. People are more focused on their studies. In the past, double degree courses were much more common, but that has since declined.

You mentioned physics. It always makes the headlines. Is it the figurehead?
It is certainly one of the prominent figureheads, but I would say we have more. We have a research focus on the Alpine region, where many different researchers and faculties work together to look at various aspects of the mountains, the Alpine region, glaciers and tourism. And our Neulateiners are also world-famous. Another thing worth mentioning is our IT and the large data center, where we are the leader in Austria.

After her first year at the helm of the University of Innsbruck, Veronika Sexl takes stock in an interview with "Tiroler Krone" editor Manuel Schwaiger.

(Bild: Johanna Birbaumer)

The rector next to the university's Nobel Prize winners.

(Bild: Johanna Birbaumer)

How does the university deal with artificial intelligence?
We are trying to incorporate it and make active use of it. But it also puts our examination system, our degree system and all written work in a new context. Presence and interaction between students and lecturers will become even more important.

The abolition of the Matura is currently being discussed. What is your position on this?
I think that's very short-sighted. In Austria, we still have a lot of room for improvement in terms of improving educational pathways as a whole. From elementary education to the Matura, we have many opportunities to improve. The Matura is ultimately only the end result. To hang it only on that, I think, gives the wrong picture.

Fakten

• Veronika Sexl became the first female rector of Innsbruck University on March 1, 2023. Born in Vienna, she previously worked at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, where she headed the Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology from 2010 to 2023.
• The University of Innsbruck has around 28,000 students and 5,500 employees. The most important research and educational institution in western Austria was founded by Emperor Leopold the First on October 15, 1669.

How is the University of Innsbruck financed?
Universities always need money. We are now facing financial negotiations. The better we are funded, the better the infrastructure, the better the research opportunities we can offer and the better the minds we can attract. In this respect, of course, we never have enough money. After the financial negotiations, the target agreements with the faculties, i.e. with the university's employees, are on the agenda. These are the big things that lie ahead of us and which we are tackling with a lot of energy.