Celebrating SDU BSS with Local New Year’s Receptions
A new year and a new beginning were marked by a new tradition at SDU BSS – New Year’s receptions held across our campuses in Sønderborg, Kolding, Esbjerg, and Odense.
It was an opportunity to reflect on 2025 as an outstanding year, with achievements in research and teaching, as well as important milestones such as the AACSB accreditation and high levels of external funding across the departments.
Dean Hanne Søndergaard Birkmose highlighted that some results stand out; however, she also emphasized that both researchers and staff deliver high quality every single day in everything we do at the Faculty. This becomes especially evident when our researchers and lecturers ensure competitive, high‑quality degree programmes and contribute new knowledge for the benefit of society.
Dean Birkmose also stressed that while certain achievements deserve recognition, they sit on top of a broad foundation of daily excellence. This is clearly reflected in the value‑creating, research‑based education offered at SDU BSS. In 2025, a total of 920 students graduated from one of our social sciences programmes. Equipped with a solid, research‑based education, they are now ready to put knowledge into action in companies and organisations both locally in the Region of Southern Denmark and globally in the wider world they step into.
The New Year’s Receptions also offered an opportunity to look ahead to 2026 and some of the many exciting things to come. Among them is the arrival in April of a new head of the SDU Business School.
No New Year’s Reception would be complete without contributions from local speakers at each campus, who ensured that we all gained new insights into various corners of social sciences research - from social mobility to future growth and regional development opportunities.
Thank you to:
Gregory Clark, Simon Sølvsten, Morten Bjørn Hansen, and Birgitte Bech Hansen.
- In Odense, Gregory Clark delivered a mini‑lecture titled: “The Myth of Nordic Mobility: More Equal, but Not More Mobile”, drawing on economic history.
- In Sønderborg, Simon Sølvsten working both at Willis and at SDU presented his work on robust organisational resilience and linked it to the theme of a new beginning rooted in the university’s strong traditions.
- In Kolding, CEO of Business Kolding, Morten Bjørn Hansen, gave an engaging talk about Kolding’s business environment, including future challenges and how the educational ecosystem serves as a foundation for the region’s growth.
- In Esbjerg, CCO of Business Esbjerg, Birgitte Bech Hansen, shared perspectives on social sciences as an integrated part of the business community in Esbjerg, offering great inspiration.