Academic Leadership Courses
Empowering Academic Present and Future Leaders
Strong academic leadership is key to staying competitive and future-ready, both individually and institutionally. Have you ever wondered:
- how you can lead effectively while fostering a positive academic culture?
- how you can inspire and support brilliant, independent-minded colleagues?
- how you can bring out the best in your team and yourself?
- how you and your colleagues can truly thrive managing all challenges?
After several successful cohorts of our Online Academic Leadership Development Course, we now offer exclusively:
Bespoke Course
tailored, high-impact learning experiences
to address the specific challenges of leading in Informatics and related fields.
Developed in close collaboration with you and your institution, our Bespoke Academic Leadership Course is tailored to your specific needs — whether shaped by institutional priorities, national contexts or management challenges.
To learn more about how we can support your leadership capacity-building, please explore the dedicated webpage, download the flyer or contact us directly This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
What Our Participants Say
"The leadership course has been very inspiring and thought-provoking!"
Anna Szlavi, Researcher at Norwegian University of Science and Technology (Norway), nominated in 2025 for the Nordic Women in Tech Award as the "DEIB Champion of the year" - 2023 Course Participant
"I found the academic leadership course extremely valuable. The entire course was very focused and discipline-centric. The learners had rather similar backgrounds and shared the same challenges, leading to very interesting discussions and developing wonderful group dynamic. The course is perfect for all."
Gert Jervan, Dean at School of Information Technologies, Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia) - 2022 Course Participant
"Thanks for a wonderful course, it really changed the way I think about my work. It cannot be said enough: this course was the best course I have ever taken."
Anna Sigridur Islind, promoted to Full Professor in May 2025 at Department of Computer Science, Reykjavík University (Iceland) - 2021 Course Participant
"The course was a great experience. Not only did I learn a lot about leadership in a very mindful and self-reflective way from highly engaged teachers. I also got to interact with a great bunch of colleagues some of which I'm still in contact with. Definitely worth the experience!"
2021 Course Participant
"This was a fantastic experience, with lots of opportunity for insight, reflection and networking."
2020 Course Participant
Our Course Facilitators
Learn more about our facilitators on their individual homepages: Geraldine Fitzpatrick, Austen Rainer.
What does leadership mean to you? Geraldine and Austen share their insights on changing cultures, leading people and values in a podcast episode here. Another podcast episode recorded in February 2021 is also available here.
Since Autumn 2020, academic leaders from over 45 institutions across and beyond Europe have participated in our Leadership Development courses. Ready to embark on your own journey? This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will work together for your customised leadership development experience!
Course FAQs
What is the difference between leadership and management as foci for your course?
- Our course is particularly focused on the leading of self and others in an academic context, recognising the unique characteristics of academic work and the challenges of learning clever academics.
- The course does not focus on the more management-related aspects of leadership such as budget management, resource allocation strategies, nor on more strategic visioning aspects of leadership.
How is your course different from other leadership courses offered by my institution?
- Many courses currently offered by universities are delivered by consulting agencies with leadership/management expertise in business/industry contexts.
- Our course is specifically grounded in academic leadership, led by scientists who bring both personal academic leadership experience as well as a strong educational grounding in the science of positive (academic) leadership.
- Our former participants also highlight the value of the community created around our course, allowing engagement with other academics from a variety of institutions, geographies, etc for cross-context sharing.
What's the work expected outside of the course?
Work outside of the course would be discussed as part of the course design. For example, sometimes we ask participants to complete a pre-course self-assessment or similar. Whether pre-work is appropriate would depend on the purpose and design of the course.
Is there an exam to evaluate what I have learnt from your course?
- No, there is no exam. The focus is on supporting an ongoing reflective learning journey. However, we do invite ongoing personal reflection about the key takeaways for you and your context from the materials just covered, and how you would translate them into the next steps.
- We can provide a Certificate of Completion, issued by Informatics Europe, for participants successfully completed the course. This can be discussed as part of the course design.
How long do I have access to the course materials?
You can download the course materials and have permanent personal access.
Is your course available for computer scientists or people from Europe only?
Our course is open to all, and will be customised to your needs. Our previous courses have welcomed professionals from other disciplines and countries such as the US and Canada, who found the experience highly beneficial. If you are interested, email us This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and we will respond within a few working days to arrange a call, discuss your specific goals, and address any questions you may have.