–采访雅盖隆大学校长沃伊切赫·诺瓦克教授
·去年竟聘校长胜出后，如今您掌舵波兰最好的大学-雅盖隆大学。您坚称，相信雅盖隆大学会跻身欧盟顶尖大学的行列。您想怎样达到这一目标？
·我保证，我们将不断发展。目前我们可以缩短与这些顶级高校之间的距离。名列前矛不是我们近期要实现的目标。因为不论我们的决心和专业水平如何，关键在于我们无法改变的经济现实。我们一些科研工作者的研究成果和公开发表的文章不仅在欧洲，甚至在世界上都绝对有竞争力。但这仍是个别的例子。而如果评估整个学校，结果是在世界名校的排行榜上我们名列第400名。这个排名榜所遵循的标准是极力推崇那些有诺贝尔奖获得者的高校。我们没有诺贝尔奖获得者，因此我们失去了很多分。近半个世纪以来我们迎头追赶那些名校，缩短与之的距离。曾经一度波兰学者，包括我本人在内纷纷到国外去， 目的是为寻求良好的科研条件。近年来，雅盖隆大学大举进行科研基础设施的建设，从而使科学家的工作环境得到改善。我们还设法说服学术界，不是每个科学家必须同时要从事教学工作。我们为最好的科研工作者专注于研究创造了条件。我深信， 我们学校将会有越来越多的在世界上有竞争力的研究项目。
·您是一名外科医生，是半个多世纪以来第一位领导综合大学的医学界人士。作为校长您给自己制定的目标将有什么实际意义？
·希望我的决心对我的行动会有帮助，特别是我在手术室学会了坚定信念度过难关。雅盖隆大学医学院正面临着许多挑战，但我们的首要任务是建立新的医院。我们先从形式上为此准备。现在，等待我们的是与卫生部就投资经费问题进行的艰难会谈。
·雅盖隆大学多年来为生命科学的发展扩建基础设施。您是否满意投资者对这些项目的反应？
·肯定不是百分之百满意。战略投资者仍未出现。我们建造了生命科学园，主要用于在生物技术，生物医药，生物，化学，药理学，物理学，纳米技术和环境保护领域进行高端研究，我们还在培养这些领域高水平的专家，目前我们正期待投资方的举措。我们做了许多工作，但或许更有必要宣传我们为此所做的一切准备。但我们知道，吸引大的投资商是个长期的过程。
·在雅盖隆大学305名卓有贡献的校长名单中，您想以什么脱颖而出？
·雅盖隆大学拥有650年的历史，因此竞争是激烈的，但是我并没有被压倒。我相信，可以引领这所大学走向质的飞跃。作为校长，我也许影响不了能在哪个实验室会产生发明创造。但对于一个有出色科学构想的年轻人来说，我可以做许多事情，特别是从学校行政的方面为其实施的这一想法提供便利和帮助。只要雅盖隆大学这个复杂的有机体的运作能取得明显的进步，那么肯定会让我心满意足。
·去年竟聘校长胜出后，如今您掌舵波兰最好的大学-雅盖隆大学。您坚称，相信雅盖隆大学会跻身欧盟顶尖大学的行列。您想怎样达到这一目标？
·我保证，我们将不断发展。目前我们可以缩短与这些顶级高校之间的距离。名列前矛不是我们近期要实现的目标。因为不论我们的决心和专业水平如何，关键在于我们无法改变的经济现实。我们一些科研工作者的研究成果和公开发表的文章不仅在欧洲，甚至在世界上都绝对有竞争力。但这仍是个别的例子。而如果评估整个学校，结果是在世界名校的排行榜上我们名列第400名。这个排名榜所遵循的标准是极力推崇那些有诺贝尔奖获得者的高校。我们没有诺贝尔奖获得者，因此我们失去了很多分。近半个世纪以来我们迎头追赶那些名校，缩短与之的距离。曾经一度波兰学者，包括我本人在内纷纷到国外去， 目的是为寻求良好的科研条件。近年来，雅盖隆大学大举进行科研基础设施的建设，从而使科学家的工作环境得到改善。我们还设法说服学术界，不是每个科学家必须同时要从事教学工作。我们为最好的科研工作者专注于研究创造了条件。我深信， 我们学校将会有越来越多的在世界上有竞争力的研究项目。
·您是一名外科医生，是半个多世纪以来第一位领导综合大学的医学界人士。作为校长您给自己制定的目标将有什么实际意义？
·希望我的决心对我的行动会有帮助，特别是我在手术室学会了坚定信念度过难关。雅盖隆大学医学院正面临着许多挑战，但我们的首要任务是建立新的医院。我们先从形式上为此准备。现在，等待我们的是与卫生部就投资经费问题进行的艰难会谈。
·雅盖隆大学多年来为生命科学的发展扩建基础设施。您是否满意投资者对这些项目的反应？
·肯定不是百分之百满意。战略投资者仍未出现。我们建造了生命科学园，主要用于在生物技术，生物医药，生物，化学，药理学，物理学，纳米技术和环境保护领域进行高端研究，我们还在培养这些领域高水平的专家，目前我们正期待投资方的举措。我们做了许多工作，但或许更有必要宣传我们为此所做的一切准备。但我们知道，吸引大的投资商是个长期的过程。
·在雅盖隆大学305名卓有贡献的校长名单中，您想以什么脱颖而出？
·雅盖隆大学拥有650年的历史，因此竞争是激烈的，但是我并没有被压倒。我相信，可以引领这所大学走向质的飞跃。作为校长，我也许影响不了能在哪个实验室会产生发明创造。但对于一个有出色科学构想的年轻人来说，我可以做许多事情，特别是从学校行政的方面为其实施的这一想法提供便利和帮助。只要雅盖隆大学这个复杂的有机体的运作能取得明显的进步，那么肯定会让我心满意足。
Chasing the World
A conversation with Professor Wojciech Nowak, Rector of the Jagiellonian University.
• Professor, you have won last year’s election of the rector of the Jagiellonian University and this way you manage the best Polish university. You declare you believe that the JU can join the leading universities in Europe. How do you want to achieve this?
• What I declare is that we will keep developing and try approach these major centres. A position at their forefront is not achievable in the near future regardless of our determination and qualifications. What is of crucial importance here is the economic realities, and we are not capable of changing those. Research results and publications of some of our scientists are absolutely competitive not only in Europe but also in the world. Unfortunately, these are still isolated examples, which places us only in the fourth hundred in the most serious world rankings of universities. The criteria applied in them strongly promote universities boasting Nobel Prize winners. As we do not have them, we lose a lot of evaluation points. We are successfully making up for a huge backlog of the last half-century when Polish scholars, including myself, went abroad, just because they could find proper conditions for scientific research only there. In recent years, the JU has significantly expanded the research infrastructure, thereby improving the working environment for researchers. We also succeed in convincing the academic community that not every scientist must simultaneously be involved in teaching. Conditions enabling to focus on research have been created for the best scientists. Therefore, I have no doubt that more and more research competitive to that done in the world will be carried out here.
• You yourself are a surgeon, the first medic managing the university in more than half a century. How will this practically affect the goals you set for yourself as rector?
• I hope that my determination in action, especially in difficult moments, which I learned in operating rooms, will be useful. Jagiellonian University Medical College is facing many challenges, but our priority is the construction of a new research hospital. We are prepared for it from the formal perspective. Now, we will have to face difficult discussions concerning funding of this project with the Ministry of Health.
• The JU has been expanding the infrastructure for the development of life science for years. Is the response to these efforts of investors from the field of economy satisfying for you?
• Certainly not entirely. Strategic investors have still not appeared. We have built Lifescience Park, which is prepared for carrying out advanced research in the field of biotechnology, biomedicine, biology, chemistry, pharmacology, physics, nanotechnology and environmental protection. We educate high-level professionals from a wide range of these sciences, so now we are waiting for a right motion on the part of investors. We have done a lot, but perhaps we need to better inform the industry of the base prepared for them. However, we realize that attracting big investors is a long-term process.
• How you would like to mark your presence on the list of already 305 names of the JU rectors?
• The competition is really big and the 650-year history of the university obliges, but it does not overwhelm me. I believe that I can manage to ensure a qualitative progress in the functioning of the university. As rector I have no influence, whatsoever, on whether a brilliant scientific work will be created in one of our labs. But, I can do a lot for a young person who has a great scientific idea. Especially, when it comes to facilitating the implementation of this idea, and to providing assistance of the administration of the university. A visible progress in the functioning of this complex organism will certainly give me enough rector`s satisfaction.
• Professor, you have won last year’s election of the rector of the Jagiellonian University and this way you manage the best Polish university. You declare you believe that the JU can join the leading universities in Europe. How do you want to achieve this?
• What I declare is that we will keep developing and try approach these major centres. A position at their forefront is not achievable in the near future regardless of our determination and qualifications. What is of crucial importance here is the economic realities, and we are not capable of changing those. Research results and publications of some of our scientists are absolutely competitive not only in Europe but also in the world. Unfortunately, these are still isolated examples, which places us only in the fourth hundred in the most serious world rankings of universities. The criteria applied in them strongly promote universities boasting Nobel Prize winners. As we do not have them, we lose a lot of evaluation points. We are successfully making up for a huge backlog of the last half-century when Polish scholars, including myself, went abroad, just because they could find proper conditions for scientific research only there. In recent years, the JU has significantly expanded the research infrastructure, thereby improving the working environment for researchers. We also succeed in convincing the academic community that not every scientist must simultaneously be involved in teaching. Conditions enabling to focus on research have been created for the best scientists. Therefore, I have no doubt that more and more research competitive to that done in the world will be carried out here.
• You yourself are a surgeon, the first medic managing the university in more than half a century. How will this practically affect the goals you set for yourself as rector?
• I hope that my determination in action, especially in difficult moments, which I learned in operating rooms, will be useful. Jagiellonian University Medical College is facing many challenges, but our priority is the construction of a new research hospital. We are prepared for it from the formal perspective. Now, we will have to face difficult discussions concerning funding of this project with the Ministry of Health.
• The JU has been expanding the infrastructure for the development of life science for years. Is the response to these efforts of investors from the field of economy satisfying for you?
• Certainly not entirely. Strategic investors have still not appeared. We have built Lifescience Park, which is prepared for carrying out advanced research in the field of biotechnology, biomedicine, biology, chemistry, pharmacology, physics, nanotechnology and environmental protection. We educate high-level professionals from a wide range of these sciences, so now we are waiting for a right motion on the part of investors. We have done a lot, but perhaps we need to better inform the industry of the base prepared for them. However, we realize that attracting big investors is a long-term process.
• How you would like to mark your presence on the list of already 305 names of the JU rectors?
• The competition is really big and the 650-year history of the university obliges, but it does not overwhelm me. I believe that I can manage to ensure a qualitative progress in the functioning of the university. As rector I have no influence, whatsoever, on whether a brilliant scientific work will be created in one of our labs. But, I can do a lot for a young person who has a great scientific idea. Especially, when it comes to facilitating the implementation of this idea, and to providing assistance of the administration of the university. A visible progress in the functioning of this complex organism will certainly give me enough rector`s satisfaction.
