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Vetmeduni reorganises itself
The University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna has been operating on the basis of a new organisational plan since 1 January 2024: it now has four departments with a total of 13 centres (instead of the previous five departments). This new structure was developed in 2023 in a university-wide participatory process and came into force following a decision by the Rectorate, approval by the Senate and authorisation by the University Council. With this reorganisation, Vetmeduni is fit for the future and can tackle the challenges in research, teaching, clinical practice and administration with even greater agility. Visible signs of the change and an important signal are, for example, a new Centre for System Transformation and Sustainability in Veterinary Medicine and the fact that, for the first time in the history of the Vetmeduni, there is gender parity not only in the Rectorate, but also at departmental management level.
In 2023, a major change process called "vetmeduni+" was launched. In several working groups, managers and employees of Vetmeduni considered the further development of the university. The aim of this university-wide participatory process was to set up the internal organisation of the university in such a way that it can meet the changing requirements in research, teaching, clinical practice and administration in an even more agile way.
The reasons for this comprehensive change process were very diverse; they ranged from changes in the University Act (such as the tenure-track career model or the new rules for university funding) to technological developments (progressive digitalisation of many administrative tasks and growing amounts of data in research and clinical practice) and current socio-political challenges (such as the effects of climate change on the animal world and thus on food safety or the changed demands on hybrid teaching as a result of the coronavirus pandemic).
Reorganisation of the departments
Within a few months, concepts for a new organisational structure were developed and subsequently discussed by the relevant committees. The new organisational plan was published in the University Gazette on 11 December 2023 following the decision of the Rectorate, the approval of the Senate and the approval of the University Council; it has been in force since 1 January 2024.
The main changes mainly concern the reorganisation of the departments and the organisational units within the departments: Vetmeduni now has four departments with a total of 13 centres (instead of the previous five departments). However, "vetmeduni+" was also used to establish innovative fields of research in the newly established Centre for System Transformation and Sustainability in Veterinary Medicine.
The new heads of the departments and centres are an important sign of all these changes: they not only stand for professional excellence and international experience as before, but also for diversity in terms of career models. At the same time, for the first time in the history of Vetmeduni, there is gender parity not only in the Rectorate, but also at the level of department heads.
"Vetmeduni+ was a major project for our university, in which all committees and organisational units, academic and non-academic staff, managers and employees contributed with great commitment. I am proud of the result we have achieved together, which allows us to look to the new year with confidence for our university. And a big thank you to everyone who actively contributed their knowledge and time to the project."
All of these changes will also be gradually posted on the website over the next few months in coordination with the new department and centre heads, and an overview of the new organisational units and their managers is already available here:
Department of Biological Sciences and Pathobiology
Head of Department: Mathias Müller
1st deputy: Monika Ehling-Schulz
2nd deputy (division study affairs): Hans Tillmann Rümenapf
Centre of Biological Sciences:
Head of Center: Mathias Müller
Deputy head of centre: Janina Burk-Luibl
Centre of Pathobiology
Head of centre: Monika Ehling-Schulz
Deputy head of centre: Herbert Weißenböck
Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences
Head of Department: Ludwig Huber
1st deputy: Leonida Fusani
2nd deputy (division study affairs): Claudia Bieber
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology
Head of centre: Claudia Bieber
Deputy head of centre: Pamela Burger
Konrad-Lorenz-Institute of Ethology
Head of center: Leonida Fusani
Deputy head of centre: Friederike Range
Messerli Research Institute of Human Animal Interactions
Head of center: Herwig Grimm
Deputy head of center: Erika Jensen-Jarolim
Clinical Department for Small Animals and Horses
Head of Department: Jessika-Maximiliane Cavalleri
1st deputy (division study affairs): Martina Mosing
2nd deputy (clinical division). Stellvertretung: Eva Schnabl-Feichter
3rd deputy: Miriam Kleiter
Clinical Centre for Small Animal Health and Research
Head of centre: Britta Vidoni
Deputy of head of centre: Nicole Luckschander-Zeller
Clinical Centre for Equine Health and Research
Head of centre: Florien Jenner
Deputy head of centre: Nora Biermann
Clinical Centre for Animal Reproduction
Head of centre: Christine Aurich
Deputy head of centre (as from 03/2024): Martim Kaps
Clinical Department for Farm Animals and Food System Science
Head of Department: Andrea Ladinig
1st deputy: Martin Wagner
2nd deputy (clinical division): Johannes Lorenz Khol
3rd deputy (division study affairs): Evelyne Selberherr
Clinical Centre for Population Medicine in Fish, Pig and Poultry
Head of center: Astrid Holzer
Deputy head of center: Dieter Liebhart
Clinial Center for Ruminant and Camelid Medicine
Head of center: Thomas Wittek
Deputy head of center: Sonja Franz
Center for Food Science and Veterinary Public Health
Head of center: Annemarie Käsbohrer
Deputy head of center: Karin Schwaiger
Center for Veterinary Systems Transformation and Sustainability
Head of center: Barbara Metzler-Zebeli
Deputy head of center: Daniela Klein-Jöbstl
Center for Animal Nutrition and Welfare
Head of center: Qendrim Zebeli
Deputy head of center: Jean-Loup Rault