Eleven people applied for the position of rector of the University of Iceland for the period from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2030. The application deadline was 31 January. The applicants are (in alphabetical order):
- Björn Þorsteinsson, professor at the Faculty of Philosophy, History and Archaeology at the UI School of Humanities
- Ganna Progrebna, professor, Executive Director of AI and Cyber Futures Institute, Bathurst, Orange, Sydney, Canberra, Australia
- Ingibjörg Gunnarsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Food Science and Nutrition at the UI School of Health Sciences and pro-rector for science
- Kolbrún Þ. Pálsdóttir, senior lecturer at the Faculty of Health Promotion, Sports and Leisure Studies and dean of the UI School of Education
- Magnús Karl Magnússon, professor at the Faculty of Medicine at the UI School of Health Sciences
- Mahdi Teymuri Garakani, researcher at the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, Teheran, Iran
- Oluwafemi E Idowu, Professor of Healthcare Leadership and Strategy and Chief Academic Officer / Provost at Oxford Business College, UK
- Remco Polman, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research & Executive Dean at the Institute of Health and Wellbeing, Federation University, Melbourne, Australia
- Sashidharan Komandur, Associate Professor at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences (HINN), Rena, Norway
- Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Political Science at the UI School of Social Sciences
- Theresa C. Balser, professor at the Faculty of Science at the University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
The University Council met today and reviewed the findings of the inter-meeting committee entrusted with the task of evaluating whether applicants were eligible for the position. In order to be eligible for the office of rector, applicants must have professorial competence, leadership qualities and a clear and ambitious vision for the University, excellent communication skills and extensive experience of management and policy-making. Eight applicants were deemed to have met these requirements. They are:
- Björn Þorsteinsson, professor at the Faculty of Philosophy, History and Archaeology at the UI School of Humanities
- Ganna Progrebna, professor, Executive Director of AI and Cyber Futures Institute, Bathurst, Orange, Sydney, Canberra, Australia
- Ingibjörg Gunnarsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Food Science and Nutrition at the UI School of Health Sciences and pro-rector for science
- Kolbrún Þ. Pálsdóttir, senior lecturer at the Faculty of Health Promotion, Sports and Leisure Studies and dean of the UI School of Education
- Magnús Karl Magnússon, professor at the Faculty of Medicine at the UI School of Health Sciences
- Oluwafemi E Idowu, Professor of Healthcare Leadership and Strategy and Chief Academic Officer / Provost at Oxford Business College, UK
- Remco Polman, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research & Executive Dean at the Institute of Health and Wellbeing, Federation University, Melbourne, Australia
- Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Political Science at the UI School of Social Sciences
The University Council has also appointed an election committee for the upcoming election. Members of the election committee are: Víðir Smári Petersen, professor at the Faculty of Law and chair; Aðalheiður Jóhannsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Law; Ebba Þóra Hvannberg, professor at the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science; Gréta Dögg Þórisdóttir, student at the Faculty of Law; Jens Ingi Andrésson, student at the Faculty of Law, and Sverrir Guðmundsson, project manager at the Division of Science and Innovation.
Further information about the election
In accordance with Article 6 of the Regulation for the University of Iceland, the election committee, on behalf of the University Council, oversees creation of electoral registers, sets the election date, manages implementation of the election, rules on appeals concerning the election, arranges absentee voting and handles other aspects of the election.
In accordance with Article 7 of the Regulation, the election for the position of rector must take place no later than seven weeks after the application deadline, i.e. by 21 March.
Both students and employees at UI have the right to vote in the election for rector, as follows:
Employees: Everyone appointed or hired to a position at UI or its institutes with a valid contract of employment has the right to vote. Those working at 0.75 FTE or higher have a full vote, while those working at 0.37-0.75 FTE have a half vote. Those working at lower than 0.37 FTE do not have a vote. Academic staff at UI’s partner institutes, working on the basis of special laws, shall have a half vote. The institutes in question are: the Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies, the Institute for Experimental Pathology at Keldur, and the National and University Library.
Students: All students enrolled at the University of Iceland at the start of the election shall have the right to vote.
The employee vote is weighted at 70% and the student vote at 30%.
As noted above, the election for rector shall be held no later than seven weeks after the application deadline. The date of the election will be clearly and widely publicised within the University. Voting will take place online over two days, starting at 9 am on the first day and finishing at 5 pm the next day. Counting of votes shall begin immediately after polling ends.
The applicant who receives the majority of votes is considered to be nominated to the position of rector. If no candidate receives a sufficient number of votes, a second election shall be held, one week later, between the two candidates who received the most votes.
Following the election, the University Council will nominate a candidate, whom the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation will then appoint to the office of rector for a five-year term. The new rector of the University of Iceland will take office on 1 July 2025 and serve until 30 June 2030.
For further information about the election, please see Article 6 of the Regulation for the University of Iceland and the Rules of procedure on the planning, implementation and organisation of elections for the position of rector of the University of Iceland and creation of electronic electoral registers.
Special webpages will be added to the UI intranet, Ugla, and the Icelandic and English versions of the public UI website containing information about the candidates and the election.