Professor Frede Blaabjerg about his years at AAU: The university's mindset has changed significantly

By Lea Laursen Pasgaard, AAU CommuniCation og Public Affairs. Translated by LeeAnn Iovanni, AAU Communication and Public Affairs. Photo: Lars Horn

When Frede Blaabjerg was in high school, he knew he was going to be an engineer. So, he and some classmates drove from Nykøbing Mors to Aalborg to see what Aalborg University Centre – as AAU was called at the time – was all about. They were fascinated by the focus on problem-oriented project work that characterized the university.

"The social dimension of the education, where you solve problems together, was definitely what attracted us. One of the unique things about AAU was also that some guys were very advanced on the energy front. That was also part of the attractiveness," recalls Frede Blaabjerg, who is now a Professor of Power Electronics at AAU Energy and one of the world's leading researchers in his field.

This year, the university celebrates its 50th anniversary, and Frede Blaabjerg is one of the AAU staff members interviewed by AAU Update about their relationship with and view of AAU – as well as wishes for the future of the workplace. The series will be published on AAU Update over the autumn.

Frede Blaabjerg has been at AAU for almost 40 years, and he refers to himself as one of the university's veterans. When he finished his education, he worked for a year at the train factory Scandia, but he could feel that he would rather do research than make trains. In 1988, he therefore began a licentiate – similar to what today is a PhD – and last year he celebrated his 25th anniversary as a professor at AAU.

A completely different university

In the nearly 40 years that Frede Blaabjerg has been at AAU the workplace has changed a lot, according to the professor:

"The entire university's mindset has changed. In the beginning, the course distribution and content was the only focus. Today, we contribute new knowledge through research and collaboration with the wider world. It's a completely different world we're looking at," says Frede Blaabjerg and illustrates the university's growth with the development in the number of PhD students at his department.

When he was a PhD student, there were four. Today, there are between 100-130.

"At that time, we received almost no external funding for our research – today AAU receives more than DKK 1 billion in external grants. We are in a completely different place today," he adds.

Watching things grow

Frede Blaabjerg is and has been a significant figure in his field, and he has received several awards for his research. In external media, his research is referred to as one of the major reasons that solar and wind energy today are a real alternative to coal and oil.

When directly asked why he has stayed at AAU all these years, the answer is that he has never had a great strategic approach to his career, and that AAU has given him the opportunity to see things grow.

"I have had the freedom to develop the area I represented. In addition, we have garnered a lot of recognition for the research we’ve done, so in that way it has been an exciting place to be," says Frede Blaabjerg.

"Within the last decade, the university has had to cut back a bit, and it’s not certain that it’s as fun to be here if you are pressured from above and have to reduce here and there. Fortunately, I – and the rest of the group at the department – have not been particularly exposed to this," Frede Blaabjerg adds.

To be able to see his 75 PhD students grow and succeed around the world. This is one of the things that makes Frede Blaabjerg most proud of his work. He and his colleagues' major contribution to connecting renewable energy to the grid is another of the professor's greatest successes.

Dean at 40

In addition, the years when he was dean of AAU's then Faculty of Engineering and Science also stand out clearly for him as an exciting period. Frede Blaabjerg was the first to run the faculty according to the new University Act that among other things brought with it a professional board and increased top-down management.

"Some people will probably smile a little when they read it, but it was actually really exciting to be a part of as there were a lot of challenges – but there were also many opportunities. On the other hand, I was only about 40 when I became dean. I couldn't imagine that I would be a manager for the rest of my career, so I chose to go back to research after my first term ended," says Frede Blaabjerg.

Full-scale university

When he was dean, the university and the faculty worked to bring the medical programme to AAU. Frede Blaabjerg believes that the fact that this succeeded is one of the most important milestones in the AAU story. In his eyes, the university went from being an entrepreneurial university to being a full-scale university with all disciplines represented.

"I am proud that the university today has such a broad academic profile. We have grown expansively and almost all disciplines are represented – except animal science and theology. In my opinion, it is really important for AAU in the long run to have that breadth. It provides us with a lot of opportunities for doing research across disciplines," he says.

Frede Blaabjerg hopes that AAU will hold on to its position and continue to develop it, so that in 50 years' time the university will also be a recognized knowledge institution with good degree programmes that collaborate with the wider world.

University as a lifestyle

Frede Blaabjerg himself plans to stay at AAU until he retires. He does not know yet when that will be. When he looks at his colleagues who have already left the labour market, it annoys him that the university is not better at retaining the most talented top researchers.

"If you take some of the universities that we want to compare ourselves to and see ourselves in, they are really good at retaining prominent researchers with international profiles when they retire. They are viewed as a natural resource and serve as a draw for their university. I think we should consider whether this is a value we would like to expand at AAU," says Frede Blaabjerg.

For him, being employed at a university is not a standard job. Not just an eight-to-four job where you put in your 37 hours and clock out at the end of the day:

"A university is a universe where knowledge is promoted. And knowledge can be based on sitting in an office and doing research – as well as on being part of a scientific community that also exists beyond your active contribution," he adds.