Time for the inauguration of new professors
On 13 November, it's one again time for one of the university's main traditions: The Inauguration of Professors. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
Hello there, Fredrik Swartling and Alexandra Teleki, Professors at the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, and the Department of Pharmacy, who will soon deliver their inaugural lectures and be formally inaugurated as Professors during The Inauguration of Professors on 13 November.
Professor Fredrik Swartling is one of the new Professors at the Faculty of Medicine. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
How does it feel to be inaugurated as a professor?
“It feels both exciting and enjoyable to be inaugurated, and I am particularly looking forward to listening to some of the other new professors. It is a wonderful opportunity to see the strength and breadth of research at our wonderful university,” says Fredrik Swartling.
You will be giving a lecture earlier in the inauguration week. What will you be talking about?
“I will explain how we collect tissue samples from children who have undergone surgery at the children’s hospital, and how we use advanced 3D models, such as organoids, to understand tumour biology. I will then show how we are developing new gene therapies that could improve treatment for children who have experienced serious relapses of their brain tumours.”
What are you most looking forward to during the inauguration week?
“I’m looking forward to presenting my research into why cancer develops, and particularly why children develop brain tumours,” says Fredrik Swartling, continuing:
“It will also be wonderful to round off the week with the formal ceremony in the Grand Auditorium, followed by dinner at the castle with my family. In fact, our teenage children will also be joining us to celebrate.”
Professor Alexandra Teleki at the Faculty of Pharmacy will give her lecture during the inauguration ceremony. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
Giving a lecture during the inauguration ceremony
During the week leading up to The Inauguration of Professors on 13 November, all faculties at Uppsala University will, as mentioned earlier, hold their own inaugural lectures. Within the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, lectures will only be given by professors from the Faculty of Medicine. These will take place on Monday 9 November, from 09:15 to 13:40, in Room IX of the University Main Building.
“I feel very honoured to have been entrusted by my colleagues with delivering the inaugural lecture in the University Main Building’s auditorium. It will be wonderful to have the opportunity to share our research with a broad audience, although I am, of course, a little nervous too,” says Alexandra Teleki.
Her lecture is entitled “Small particles, great opportunities for more precise diagnosis and treatment”.
“It will explore how we can use nanotechnology to develop the medicines and diagnostic methods of the future. One of the key challenges in drug development is ensuring that the right amount of a medicine reaches the right place in the body, in order to maximise the effectiveness of treatment while minimising side effects. That, and quite a lot more, is what I will be talking about.”
How does it feel to be formally inaugurated as a professor?
“It is a great honour to be inaugurated as a professor at a university with such a long history and strong academic traditions as Uppsala University. At the same time, I see it as wonderful recognition of the research and research environment that we have built together over the past few years. This makes the milestone particularly meaningful, not only to me personally but also as recognition of our collective efforts,” says Alexandra Teleki.
Robin Widing
Inauguration of Professors at Uppsala university
The Inauguration of Professors in Uppsala is a public ceremony at which the Vice-Chancellor installs new professors in their office and the new professors hold inaugural lectures. The tradition of installing new professors dates back to the Middle Ages.
Inaugurations of professors and conferment ceremonies are the traditions that all Swedish universities and other institutions of higher education and research have in common.
The professorial inauguration derives from the medieval ecclesiastical tradition of installing newly appointed canons (cathedral priests) in their seats in the choir-stalls (in Latin, stallum). In a similar way, the University’s Vice-Chancellor symbolically installed new professors by solemnly leading them in procession to the podium for them to give a lecture.
This ceremonial act, first documented in December 1625, has continued without interruption ever since. However, tradition and renewal go hand in hand. These days, though all professors appointed by the University are installed at the same ceremony in the University Main Building, they give their inaugural lectures faculty by faculty during the week of the inauguration.