Curriculum Vitae
Prof. Dr. Konrad Osterwalder
Switzerland
Konrad Osterwalder
Konrad Osterwalder was born in Frauenfeld, Thurgau, Switzerland, in June 1942. He studied at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule; ETH) in Zurich, where he earned a Diploma in theoretical physics in 1965 and a Doctorate in theoretical physics in 1970.
After one year with the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, he accepted a research position at Harvard University in 1971. He remained at Harvard for six years, and was promoted to Assistant Professor for Mathematical Physics in 1973 and Associate Professor for Mathematical Physics in 1976. In 1977, he returned to Switzerland upon being appointed a full Professor for Mathematical Physics at ETH Zurich.
During his tenure at ETH Zurich, Prof. Osterwalder served as Head of the Department of Mathematics (1986–1990) and Head of the Planning Committee (1990–1995), and was founder of the Centro Stefano Franscini seminar center in Ascona. He was appointed Rector of ETH in 1995 and held that post for 12 years. From November 2006 through August 2007, he also served concurrently as ETH President pro tempore.
On 1 September 2007, Prof. Dr. Osterwalder joined United Nations University as its fifth Rector. In that role, he holds the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Prof. Dr. Osterwalder's research focused on the mathematical structure of relativistic quantum field theory as well as on elementary particle physics and statistical mechanics. During his long and distinguished career, he has been a Fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and a Visiting Fellow/Guest Professor at several prominent universities around the world, including the Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques (IHES; Bures-sur-Yvette, France); Harvard University; University of Texas (Austin); Max Planck Institute for Physics and Astrophysics (Munich), Università La Sapienza (Rome); Università di Napoli; University of Tokyo; and Weitzmann Institute of Science (Rehovot, Israel).
Among other roles during his academic career, Prof. Dr. Osterwalder has served as:
- Editor of Communications in Mathematical Physics,
- Treasurer and President of the International Association for Mathematical Physics,
- Member of the Visiting Committee of the Harvard Department of Physics,
- President of the IHES National Committee of the Swiss Academy of Natural Sciences,
- Member of the Advisory Council of the Euler Institute in St. Petersburg,
- Vice-President of the Conference of Rectors of Swiss Universities,
- President of the Conference of European Schools of Advanced Engineering Education and Research (CESAER), and
- Member of the International Academic Advisory Panel of the Government of Singapore.
Current positions that he holds, inter alia, are:
- President of UNITECH International (a collaboration between several European Technical Universities and more than 20 leading multinational corporations),
- Chairman of the Bologna-Project Group (Swiss Rectors Conference),
- Member of the Nucleo di Valutazione (supervisory council) of the Politecnico di Milano,
- Member of the Conseil Administative of the Ecole Polytechnique de France (Paris),
- Member of the "Comité de l´Enseignement" of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris,
- Member of the University Council of the Università della Svizzera Italiana,
- President of the University Council of the Technical University Darmstadt, and
- Head of the Evaluationsverbund Darmstadt-Kaiserslautern-Karlsruhe.
Rector Osterwalder is member of the Swiss Academy of Technical Sciences and holds an honorary degree from the Helsinki Technical University. He is married and has three children.
Brief Curriculum Vitae of Rector Konrad Osterwalder
Education and Professional Career
| 1961 | Took final High School Exam at the Gymnasium Frauenfeld (focus on classical languages) |
| 1961–1965 | Studied Physics at ETH Zurich, received Diploma in Theoretical Physics; simultaneously studied Philosophy at University of Zurich (no formal degree) |
| 1965–1966 | Military service |
| 1966–1970 | Studied Theoretical Physics with Professors Klaus Hepp and Res Jost; awarded Doctorate degree |
| 1968 | Studied at Enrico Fermi International School of Physics (Varenna, Italy) |
| 1970 | Studied at Les Houches Summer School on Relativistic Quantum Field Theory and Statistical Mechanics |
| 1995 | Studied Executive Management at IMD (Lausanne, Switzerland) |
| 1995 | Studied at Institute for Educational Management, Harvard Graduate School for Higher Education |
Employment
| 1966–1970 | Assistant at Institute for Theoretical Physics, ETH |
| 1970–1971 | Postdoctoral Fellow in Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University |
| 1971–1973 | Postdoctoral Fellow in Department of Physics, Harvard University |
| 1973–1976 | Assistant Professor for Mathematical Physics in Departments of Mathematics and of Physics, Harvard University (joint appointment) |
| 1976–1978 | Associate Professor for Mathematical Physics in Departments of Mathematics and of Physics, Harvard University (joint appointment) |
| 1977–2007 | Full Professor for Mathematical Physics in Department of Mathematics, ETH Zurich |
| 1995–2007 | Rector, ETH Zurich |
| 2006–2007 | President pro tempore, ETH Zurich |
| 2007– | Rector of United Nations University |
Guest Professorships (inter alia) at
- University of Texas, Austin
- Harvard University, Cambridge
- Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques IHES, Bures-sur-Yvette (France)
- Max-Planck-Institut für Physik und Astrophysik, Munich
- Università La Sapienza, Rome
- Università di Napoli
- Tokyo University
- Weitzmann Institute of Science, Rehovot (Israel)
Honours, Prizes
| 1970 | ETH Medaille, Kern Prize |
| 1974–1978 | Fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation |
| 2000 | Member of the Swiss Academy of Technical Sciences |
| 2002 | Honorary Member of Riga Technical University |
| 2003 | Honorary Degree from the Helsinki Technical University |
Research Topics
Mathematical physics; in particular, the mathematical structure of relativistic Quantum Field Theory, Euclidean Quantum Field Theory, constructive Quantum Field Theory, Lattice Gauge Theories, Supersymmetry and other problems of elementary particle physics and statistical mechanics
Other Positions: Past
- Member, Visiting Committee, Dept. of Physics, Harvard University
- Member, Comité administrative de l' Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques (Bures sur Yvette, France)
- Vice President, Swiss Rectors Conference
- President, Conference of European Schools of Advanced Engineering Education and Research (CESAER)
- Member, International Advisory Panel of the Government of Singapore
- Member, Nucleo di Valutazione del Politecnico di Milano
- Rapporteur of the Salamanca Convention 2001 (universities preparing input for the Prague meeting of ministers to continue the Bologna Process)
Other Positions: Current
- Chairman, Swiss Committee to coordinate the Bologna reform
- Founder and President, UNITECH International (a collaborative project by European technical universities and leading multinational corporations)
- President, Jury of the Brandenberger Foundation
- Member, Comité administratif de l'Ecole Polytechnique de France
- Member, Comité de l'enseignement de l'Ecole des Mines de Paris
- Member, Conseil d'Orientation Statégique de ParisTech
- Member, Consiglio dell'Università della Svizzera Italiana
- Chair, University Council, Technical University Darmstadt (Germany)
- Member, Strategic Council, Free University of Berlin
- Member giuria del Pirelli Internetional Award
- Member, Comitato Scientifico Alta Scuola Politecnica (Politecnici di Milano e di Torino)
- Member, Beirat Robert Bosch Stiftung
- Member, Consiglio Fondazione Italian Institute of Technology
- Member, Academic Council of the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE)
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Page last modified 2008.03.25.
