09.12.2019

"Tübingen changed my life and fueled my research career"

The newly appointed Ambassador Dr. Petar Milin is highly committed and opens two important geographical locations for research cooperation and exchange for the University of Tübingen. Born in Serbia, he is currently conducting research at Birmingham University and has a large network both in the Balkan region and in the UK.

Dr. Petar Milin is a psychologist who focuses his research on understanding language and language learning and also has published extensively in the domain of language processing. His research career started at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia. In 2006 he was invited to the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in Nijmegen as a postdoctoral visiting fellow by his current cooperation partner in Tübingen, the Humboldt Prize winner and ERC grantee Professor Harald Baayen. “This first collaboration blossomed in a really good partnership. It led Dr. Milin to my research group Quantitative Linguistics at the University of Tübingen in 2013, where our common interest culminated. Today, Dr. Milin is still a valued cooperation partner and I am proud that our common research has two hubs now. There are not many cooperations where this kind of osmosis is happening,” says Professor Baayen when describing their joint work during the ceremony. 

Dr. Milin is not only an excellent scientist, but also an effective bridge builder and has many scientific contacts both in the UK and in the Balkan region. “It is a special concern of mine to keep the close contacts to the EU and in particular to Tübingen also after the Brexit and furthermore not to lose sight of EU neighbouring states in the Balkan region”, said the newly appointed ambassador. Here, too, he will be an important contact for the University of Tübingen: Within the framework of CIVIS – A European Civic University, which it has formed together with seven other European universities, the University of Tübingen is keen to maintain and build contacts with universities in both the UK and Southeastern Europe. Professor Monique Scheer, Vice-President for International Affairs, emphasized: “The award as ambassador is a token of our gratitude to Dr Milin for his enthusiasm for and close ties with the University of Tübingen. With him, we gain a UK partner who has dedicated himself to European values in times of separatism and particularism and who can also support us as advisor and companion in capacity building and the strengthening of relations in the Balkan region”.

Dr. Milin describes the three years at the University of Tübingen as a critical point in his life. His work as a senior researcher in the Department of Linguistics has shaped and fueled his career and he is looking forward to acting as an advocate for Tübingen.

The University Ambassador title is awarded to research alumni and alumnae of the University of Tübingen whose connections to their alma mater are of outstanding quality and eminence. The ambassador network is part of Tübingen’s international research alumni relations within the framework of the University’s internationalization strategy.

Sandra Zepernick

Tübingen Ambassador Petar Milin and his research
https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/languages/milin-petar.aspx 
https://outofourminds.bham.ac.uk 

Research Alumni Network TRACe
www.uni-tuebingen.de/trace