QS Higher Ed Summit: Europe 2026 speakers

Explore the speakers for this year's Summit.

Meet the voices of this year’s summit

Education leaders, industry experts, and policymakers shaping Europe’s advantage in the global higher education market.
Dr Prof Zviad Gabisonia
Deputy Minister, Ministry of Education, Science and Youth of Georgia
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Dr Eszter Lukács
Vice-President for International Affairs and Strategic Relations, Széchenyi István Egyetem
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Nunzio Quacquarelli
QS President & Chair of the Board
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Dr Theodoros Papaioannou
CEO, Study in Greece
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Gabriela Allmi
Senior Director EMEA & Asia Pacific, Business Harvard Impact
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Leona Isabella Verdadero
Programme Specialist, Digital Policies & Digital Transformation, UNESCO
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Joachim Lutz
Dean and President, Mannheim Business School
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Dr Cheryl Yu
Director of Programmes, TNE Institute
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Dr Ram Madhav
President, India Foundation
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Dr Péter Levente Lakatos
Director General, MAB; Board Member, ENQA
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Alanna Heyer
Higher Education Officer, UNHCR
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Alejandro Caballero
Principal Education Specialist, IFC The World Bank Group
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London
Andrew Plant
QS Executive Director – Europe
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London
Angel Layer
QS Product Manager
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Baljinder Birdi
Global Business and Engagement Manager Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education
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Ben Sowter
QS Senior Vice President
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Cerys Hutton
Head of Warwick Digital Academy, University of Warwick
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Christopher Cripps
Vice-President for Europe & International Affairs, Institute Politechnique de Paris
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Dr Abir al Harbi
Assistant to V.P. for Planning and Development, King Saud University
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Dr Adrienn Dernóczy-Polyák
Vice-Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, Széchenyi István University
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Dr Aigerim Kaumenova
Director, CEEMAN
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Dr Ákos Kovács, PhD
Head of the Department of Artificial Intelligence and HPC, Széchenyi István University
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Dr Beáta Fehervolgyi
Dean, Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Pannonia
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Dr Björn Kjellander
Director of Quality and Accreditation, Jönköping University
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Dr Csaba Csáki
Dean for Artificial Intelligence, Corvinus University of Budapest
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Dr Elchin Babayev
Rector, Baku State University
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Albacete
Dr Habib Fardoun
QS Principal Consultant
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Dr Ianis G. Matsoukas
Deputy Principal, Strategic Projects & Reputation Management, University of Keele - Greece
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Dr Ignacio de Lorenzo Rodriguez
University Rankings Unit Director, University of Navarra
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Dr Iris Nuñez Trebol, Ph.D
Vice-Rector for International Relations and Research, Universidad Alfonso X el Sabio
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Dr Janet Ilieva
Founder, Education Insight
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Dr Jean-Marc Ogier
General Director, CESI
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Dr J. Leslie Zachariah-Wolff
Secretary General of Idea League, TU Delft
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Dr Karen Tinsner-Fuchs
Head of the Quality & Sustainability Department, University of St. Gallen
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Dr Miao He
Head of International Reputation and Rankings Strategy, University of Bristol
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Dr Michelle Sisto
Associate Dean, EDHEC AI Center; Associate Professor, AI and Decision Sciences, EDHEC Business School
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Dr Péter Fehér
Director of International Alliances, Budapesti Cornivus Egyetem
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Dr Prof Zviad Gabisonia
Deputy Minister, Ministry of Education, Science and Youth of Georgia
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Dr Rachel Rui
Director of Global Research, Innovation and Partnerships, University of Tennessee; Assistant Director, UT Japan Center
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Dr Sándor Remsei
Dean, Kautz Gyula Faculty of Economics, Széchenyi István University
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Dr Sargis Asatryants
Vice-Rector for Internationalization and Reforms, National Polytechnic University of Armenia
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Dr Tamás Budai
Assistant Lecturer, Dept. of AI & HPC, Széchenyi István University
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Ehab Badwi
Founder, Syrian Youth Assembly
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Eleni Bolou-Schlesinger
QS Regional Partnerships Manager
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Friederike Hettinger
Managing Director, TUM International
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İfakat Hande Çevik Enyedi
Managing Director, ASELSAN Hungary
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Ines Drieselmann
Vice president of Alumni and Careers, IE University
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London
Jacques de Champchesnel
QS Head of Consulting and Insights
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Jacqui Jenkins
International Higher Education Consultant, The PIE
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Joan Concannon
Chief Reputation and Stakeholder Relations Officer, University of York
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London
Jonathan Sabarre
QS Principal Consultant
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Jonathan Simons
Partner and Head of the Education Practice, Public First
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Juan Carlos Mejía-Cuartas
QS Customer Experience Manager
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Judit Polgár
World Chess Hall of Fame; Author; Educational Ambassador, Judit Polgar Chess Foundation
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Kamil Senhaji
CEO International, Galileo Global Education
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Katsuhiko Namikawa
Executive Advisor/Honorary President, Tokyo Business and Language College
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Kirill Ivanov
Customer Success Manager, Elsevier
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London
Kuldeep Reddy
QS Senior Consultant
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Sheffield
Laura Lightfinch
QS Strategic Content Manager
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Leila Guerra
Associate Vice President (Education), London School of Economics
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Lene Dammand Lund
Rector, Royal Danish Academy – Architecture, Design, Conservation
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Liu Haoyi
Marketing Director, Huawei Technologies Hungary and Western Balkans
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Lone Grønbæk Jørgensen
Associate Professor, Head of Department, Centre Director, The Faculty of Business and Social Sciences, University of Southern Denmark
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Lorna Gozzard
Director of Engagement, Brand & Marketing, Royal College of Art
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Marine Rabeyrin
EMEA Education Segment Director, Lenovo
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Marin Njavro
Managing Director, Luxembourg School of Business
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Martin Serrano
QS Product Director, Skills & Labor Markets
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Meelis Kitsing
Rector, Estonian Business School
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Michael Breme
Chairman, Board of Audi Hungaria Zrt
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Michael Nowlis
Director, MBA Programmes, Imperial Business School
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Mohab Saleh
Executive Director of Business Development, Galala University
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Narayani Prakash
QS Senior Product Manager
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Nathalie Brahler
Track Lead Creative Business Beyond Campus, Hogeschool Utrecht
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Nelson Ribeiro
Vice-Rector, Catholic University of Portugal
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Nilly Castano
QS Senior Consultant
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Patrice Houdayer
Executive Vice President - Global Academic Affairs, SKEMA Business School
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Péter Frazon
Student; Vehicle Engineering BSc, Széchenyi István University
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Prof Bruno van Pottelsberghe
Rector, Budapesti Cornivus Egyetem
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Prof Dr András Takács
Full professor and the Dean of the Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Pécs
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Prof Dr Hasan Mandal
Rector, Istanbul Technical University
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Prof Dr Radomír Masaryk
Professor of Psychology and Vice-Rector for External Affairs, Comenius University Bratislava
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Prof Dr Rita Bendaravičienė
Professor of Management at the Faculty of Economics and Management, Vytautas Magnus University
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Prof Edgar Meyer
Dean, Birmingham Business School
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Prof Erica Wilson
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Academic Innovation) and Dean, Southern Cross University
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Prof Fotis Papageorgiou
Chief Academic Officer, Metropolitan College
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Prof Gurpreet Singh Jagpal OBE
Chief Commercial Officer, Aston University
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Prof Hannah Holmes
Dean of the Business School and Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor within the Faculty of Business and Law, Manchester Metropolitan University
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Prof Isabella Nova
Vice Rector for Strategic Planning, Politecnico di Milano
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Prof João Pinto
Dean and Professor of Finance, Católica Porto Business School.
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Prof Laura Costanzo
Dean, Southampton Business School
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Prof Maha Mourad
Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and Administration and Professor of Marketing, The American University in Cairo
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Prof Majid Movahedi Rad
Professor and Vice-Dean, Széchenyi István University
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Prof Margaret Topping
Pro-Vice Chancellor for Global Engagement, Queen's University Belfast
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Prof Michael Scott
Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International), University of Warwick
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Prof Paweł Urgacz
Deputy Dean for Internationalisation, WSB University
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Prof Per Mickwitz
Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Sustainability and Campus Development, Lund University
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Prof Raquel Cabero Quiles
Academic Director, Master in Business Analytics and Data Science, IE University
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Prof Stefano Caselli
Dean of SDA Bocconi School of Management and Full Professor of Banking and Finance, Bocconi University
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Prof Tănase Stamule
Dean, FABIZ
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Prof Thomas Roche
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Academic Quality), Southern Cross University
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Santiago Garcia
Vice President Strategic Development and International, KEDGE Business School
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Sarah Vaughan
Senior Advisor, Former Associate Dean, ICN Business School
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Selma Toohey
Senior Vice President, University Services
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London
Simona Bizzozero
QS Communications Director
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Tamim Elbasha
Executive Director & Associate Dean - Learning & Quality Development, Audencia
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Tom Lindholm
CEO of Aalto University Executive Education (Aalto EE) and Head of Lifewide Learning, Aalto University
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Wesley Siqueira
QS Product and Research Advisor
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London
Zoya Zaitseva
QS Innovation Manager
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