Kerstin Mey (born 1963) is a German academic and president of the

University of Limerick The University of Limerick (UL) ( ga, Ollscoil Luimnigh) is a Public university, public research university institution in Limerick, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Founded in 1972 as the National Institute for Higher Education, Limerick, it beca ...

. She was the first woman to head a university in Ireland, on an acting basis, and having participated in an international competition, was appointed to the full position with effect from 8 October 2021. She held positions in a number of universities in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

before moving to

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

in the west of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Biography

Early life and education

Kerstin Mey was born in

East Berlin East Berlin was the ''de facto'' capital city of East Germany from 1949 to 1990. Formally, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet sector of Berlin, established in 1945. The American, British, and French sectors were known as ...

, Germany in 1963. She attended

Humboldt University Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of ...

, where she studied Art and German (language and literature). She ultimately earned a PhD in Art Theory and Aesthetics.

Academic and administrative career

She was pro-vice-chancellor and dean of the Westminster School of Media, Arts and Design, and professor of Contemporary Art and Theory at the

University of Westminster , mottoeng = The Lord is our Strength , type = Public , established = 1838: Royal Polytechnic Institution 1891: Polytechnic-Regent Street 1970: Polytechnic of Central London 1992: University of Westminster , endowment = £5.1 million ...

. In April 2018, she became the vice-president for Academic Affairs and Student Engagement for the University of Limerick as well as the institution's Professor of Visual Culture.

Other roles

Mey has held a number of positions in education including Director of GuildHE Research, a higher education training cooperative in the United Kingdom, and serving on the Austrian Science Board. Mey is currently on the

ISEA International ISEA International (''pronounced'' , like "Isaiah") is an international non-profit organization which encourages "interdisciplinary academic discourse" and exposure for "culturally diverse organizations and individuals working with art, science ...

Advisory Committee. She also serves as a member of the board of directors of the

Irish Chamber Orchestra The Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) is an Irish classical music ensemble, administratively based at the University of Limerick. János Fürst founded the ICO in 1963. The ICO consisted only of strings as its regular ensemble for many years, adding wi ...

Presidency

In July 2020 she was appointed interim president of the University of Limerick. The university ran a global search and competition for the presidency over the following months, and Mey was announced as the winning candidate. She was empowered as the president of the university at the meeting of its governing authority on 8 October 2021.

References and sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mey, Kerstin 1963 births Presidents of the University of Limerick People from East Berlin Living people Humboldt University of Berlin alumni