Female professor among scientific elite

Professor Majken Schultz, CBS, Forsidefoto: Videnskabernes Selskab

For more than 250 years members of the scientific elite have gathered at the Royal Danish Academy of Science and Letters, or the Royal Academy as it’s known. Since its inception in 1742 the academy has been responsible for scientific contributions such as the first topographical survey of Denmark and a dictionary of the Danish language.

Now a part of this, Professor Majken Schultz from the Department of Organization, explains:

- I see it as an acknowledgement of the valuable research contributions CBS makes. CBS hasn’t previously kept company with the finest of old universities, but my appointment and that of other CBS researchers indicate that this has changed.

She thus becomes one of the women who represent approximately nine percent of the Royal Academy’s 500 members.   

Schultz does research on the interaction between the culture, identity and image of organisations. She has authored various books and conducted a number of multi-year surveys of Danish companies, including LEGO, Bang & Olufsen, where she is now a member of the board, and most recently Carlsberg.

Fierce competition
The Royal Academy currently selects the board at the Carlsberg Foundation and promotes research by holding meetings, issuing publications and through international collaboration. Membership in this prestigious organisation is of special significance for Schultz, who states:

- Some prizes are awarded because you have a certain position or age. But this is special recognition. There’s a long selection process with multiple candidates, which means that the eye of the needle is smaller, so to speak.

The Royal Academy already counts several male CBS professors among its members, including: Alan Irwin, the Department of Organization; David Lando, the Department of Finance; Michael Herslund, the Department of International Business Communication; and Per Øhrgaard, the Department of Business and Politics.

The Royal Danish Academy of Science and Letters is divided into two branches, the humanities and the natural sciences. It has approximately 250 Danish members and 250 foreign members, about nine percent of whom are women.

Read more about Majken Schultz

Read more about the Royal Danish Academy of Science and Letters