The executive boards of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam) have appointed Professor Murray Pratt as the dean of Amsterdam University College (AUC). Pratt succeeds Acting Dean Dr Ramon Puras, and is also appointed to the position of professor of Contemporary Humanities at the UvA.
Amsterdam University College is a joint centre of excellence between the UvA and VU Amsterdam that offers a liberal arts and sciences programme at an undergraduate level.
‘We are delighted to have found an excellent successor for Marijk van der Wende and Ramon Puras, who held the position of dean on an interim basis. Murray Pratt has extensive leadership, management, teaching and research experience in the humanities. His record demonstrates a commitment to interdisciplinarity, innovation and internationalisation, and he is more than capable of building bridges between different sectors, which is of great importance to the AUC’, says Prof. Dymph van den Boom, rector magnificus of the University of Amsterdam.
Prof. Vinod Subramaniam, rector magnificus of VU Amsterdam, agrees. ‘With his international experience and focus on internationalisation, Murray Pratt will be an asset to AUC, which attracts students from across the globe. We wish him much success and look forward to working with him.’
Since 2010, Murray Pratt has been the dean of the School of Arts and Humanities at Nottingham Trent University (UK), where he also holds a chair in French and International Studies. Pratt joined Nottingham Trent University in 2008 as head of the department of Languages and International Studies. Prior to this, he headed the department of European Studies at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia, where he also served as deputy director. Pratt has published extensively on French and international cinema, literature and culture, and is a member of the consultative committee of the academic journal European Comic Art and of the international editorial advisory board of Portal Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies.
At Nottingham Trent University, Pratt developed innovative educational pathways for students with civic and cultural partners, including galleries, museums and media companies, and supported the launch of the city’s National Videogame Arcade. He has a keen interest in promoting digital learning within the curriculum, and his pioneering work involving students in the production, dissemination and enhancement of an online graphic novel about Nottingham’s literary history was awarded the 2015 Guardian prize for teaching excellence. He has played an active part in encouraging the process of internationalisation and in establishing collaborative opportunities for students in Asia, Europe and the Americas. As undergraduate education becomes increasingly global, Pratt understands how students can benefit from periods studying and working in other countries.
About AUC
Amsterdam University College is a joint teaching institute between the UvA and VU Amsterdam and a prime example of successful collaboration between the two Amsterdam universities. With its motto ‘Excellence and Diversity in a Global City’, AUC offers students from around the world a selective and residential teaching programme. The English-taught liberal arts and sciences programme immerses students in a wide range of social and scientific questions within various disciplines. Lecturers with a strong international background are responsible for small-scale and intensive teaching.