Michaelidou congratulates University of Cyprus’ first woman rector

Nicosia, Cyprus. Education Minister Athena Michaelidou on Thursday congratulated Marina Neophytou on becoming the first woman elected rector of the University of Cyprus. Neophytou secured 214 votes in the fourth round of voting on Wednesday.

Cooperation with higher education

In a statement on the social media platform X, Michaelidou said she was “certain cooperation would continue” between the government and academia, with the aim of “upgrading the university as well as higher education nationwide”.

The closely contested election was the first in which around five candidates stood for the post. Neophytou is expected to take office in mid-December and will serve a four-year term until 2030.

Academic career

Neophytou is a professor of environmental engineering and has been dean of the university’s engineering school since 2023.

As head of the civil engineering department from 2021 to 2023, she helped establish an undergraduate environmental engineering programme, the first of its kind in Cyprus, which began in 2025.

She holds a BA, a master’s degree in engineering and a doctorate from Cambridge University, all completed on full scholarships.

She has held visiting positions at ETH Zurich, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Los Alamos National Laboratory in the United States.