‘Visiting professor’ scheme sees lackluster support
A scheme to invite academics from foreign universities to teach in Greece has attracted just nine applications since being launched on April 21, mainly as a result of lackluster interest from local businesses to support the plan.
According to the July 2022 law establishing the “visiting professor” scheme, academics from other countries can teach at a Greek university for a semester, with the option of extending their term for three years. The catch, however, is that these academics need to find a business partner in the country who will support their research, as part of a bid by the Education Ministry to connect academia more closely with the real economy by bolstering university-business partnerships.
“Businesses in Greece are not really interested in supporting research. Moreover, it’s not easy for every scientific field to find businesses to work with,” Panteion University Rector Christina Koulouri tells Kathimerini.
