“I am honoured that the Senate and Supervisory Board of Ruhr-Universität Bochum have elected me as its rector,” Martin Paul says. “I’m pleased to be able to put my experience in Maastricht to good use at one of the largest and most highly regarded universities in Germany. I’m now halfway through my third and final term at UM. I’ve been president here for almost ten years, so this is a good time to announce a new step. It will also give UM the time and space needed to find a suitable successor.”

Paul joined UM in May 2008, combining his professorship in clinical pharmacology with administrative positions. Previously, he served as vice chair of the MUMC+ and dean of the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences. He has been president of the university since 2011.

'New kid on the block'

“During his time here, Martin Paul has managed to maintain UM’s ‘new kid on the block’ spirit while also further enhancing its reputation, among other things by expanding the high-quality package of education and research fields,” says Annelies van der Pauw, chair of the Supervisory Board.

“His strong international orientation reflects the connection that UM, as a European university, is seeking across borders. At the same time, he has championed further cooperation with government authorities, the business sector and other educational institutions in our own (Eu)region, the most striking result being the development of the four Brightlands campuses.”

“Martin Paul is leaving a university that has—partly thanks to his efforts—grown considerably over the last decade in terms of both quality and numbers, and which is set to expand its partnerships with organisations such as YUFE [Young Universities for the Future of Europe]. We’ll miss him.”

RUB and UM: many similarities

RUB, where Paul will start as rector on 1 November, is one of the 10 largest universities in Germany, with 43,000 students and more than 5,800 employees spread over 20 faculties. “Besides its larger scale, RUB resembles UM in many respects,” Paul says.

“It was founded with a view to innovating higher education and with strong links to the region, and opted early on for a transdisciplinary approach to research. It’s also in an interesting location, with the mission to transform the old industrial landscape of the Ruhr region through knowledge, science and culture. For me, it’s an exciting challenge to make a contribution there on the basis of my experiences in Maastricht, Limburg and the Netherlands.”

The governance structure at German universities differs from that in the Netherlands. Dutch universities have an Executive Board with a president, vice president and rector. In Germany, the comparable body is the rectorate, composed of the rector, vice-rectors and Kanzler (responsible for administration).

The UM Supervisory Board will start the procedure to appoint a new university president as soon as possible.