Luciana Vaccaro

After graduating in Physics from the University of Federico II in Naples, Luciana Vaccaro obtained a doctorate in Microtechnology at the EPFL. After working as a lecturer at the Institute of Microtechnology at the University of Neuchâtel, she became director of postgraduate programmes in health economics and management at UNIL. In 2009, she set up and managed the Grants Office at EPFL, with the task of securing funding for Swiss and European research. Since 2013, she has been Rector of the HES-SO, Switzerland’s largest university of applied sciences, with more than 21,000 students and 28 schools. At the same time, she has held various positions in organisations responsible for supporting and promoting Swiss education and research. Since 1 February 2023, she has been President of swissuniversities, the Rectors’ Conference of the Swiss Universities.