Dr Pramod Pathak is currently the Faculty Dean of Digital & Data at Technological University Dublin. He was formerly Dean of the School of Computing at National College of Ireland. Under his leadership, NCI’s School of Computing has become one of the largest in Ireland, leading the way in Cloud Computing, Data Science, Cybersecurity and Fintech.
Drawing on a wealth of knowledge accrued from industry, from senior management and academic leadership, from research and innovation excellence, and from a deep appreciation of pedagogy, Dr Pathak shows his passion and commitment to the highest quality learning and teaching experience for students through student-centred learning and the development of high-quality, cutting-edge higher education programmes. His personal mission to help students and faculty succeed aligns with NCI’s institutional mission to ‘change lives through education’.
One of the ways he has served NCI’s School of Computing is by creating the School International Advisory Board, consisting of faculty from Stanford, Berkeley, Chicago and Cornell, chaired by Professor Jeffrey Ullman, recipient of Turing Award 2020.
Dr Pathak launched NCI’s Cloud Competency Centre in 2012, the first centre for cloud excellency in Ireland, drawing on the advice of the advisory board, which continues to meet regularly, and whose members have graciously guest-lectured at the College over the years; opportunities opened up for general attendance beyond the School, allowing public access to spirited, international academic debate on the very nature and future of computing.
Dr Pathak has been a first-class honours student throughout his career. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the world-renowned St Stephen’s College, Delhi. He completed his MSc/PhD in Mathematics at the University of Kanpur, where he became an Assistant Professor and progressed to become Associate Professor in 1992. His outstanding academic performance was complemented by his practical experience in senior positions in the ICT industry including working on ESA satellite Rosetta.
In 2006, Dr Pathak was selected as Dean of the School of Computing, to build and lead the computing faculty at National College of Ireland. During his deanship, he has built the school ten-fold in terms of student numbers, teaching innovations, research and innovation. He has made this possible by planning, creating a shared vision with faculty and management, governing and managing with fairness and enthusiasm, and effectively leading change.
An active researcher throughout his career, funding of over €10 million, his main area of interest is applying technology, computing and analytics/AI to the improvement of learning. Much of this success can be credited to his ability to build strong, clear relationships with external agencies, committees and stakeholders, both nationally and internationally. Dr Pathak has been honoured with a number of National and International awards, the one that he is most thankful and proud of is “All India Merit Scholarship” that funded his education in India.