Stockholm university

Jubilee doctors are a living part of the university's history

More than fifty jubilee doctors will be conferred at the university’s two doctoral conferment ceremonies at the end of September. These individuals represent a bridge to the university’s history, and by recognizing them, the university hopes to show its gratitude for their scientific accomplishments.

The jubilee doctors Birgitta Holm, professor emeritus in Literature, and the art historian Hans Henrik Brummer, were conferred at the ceremony that took place on May 31, 2022. Photo: Rickard Kilström


A jubilee doctor (from the Latin “doctor jubilaris”) is a title that is awarded at a conferment ceremony to honor individuals who have held the title doctor for fifty years.

“The jubilee doctors have each contributed to Stockholm University in their own way. The conferment is an expression of the university’s gratitude for their scientific accomplishments and commitment. They also represent a link to history for new doctors, who represent the future of research,” says Anne Heikkinen Sandberg, Master of ceremonies at Stockholm University.

Anne Heikkinen Sandberg, Master of ceremonies at Stockholm University
Anne Heikkinen Sandberg, Master of ceremonies at Stockholm University. Photo: Ingmarie Andersson

Sandberg continues by saying that the conferment of jubilee doctors has been a tradition at the university since 1804, a tradition that is maintained at universities in Sweden and Finland.  

“In 1804, two esteemed men were conferred jubilee doctorates at Uppsala University. They were two of Linné’s disciples from the 1750s who were still living, and by paying tribute to Linné’s memory through the act of promoting the gentlemen, it was an especially solemn occasion.”

 

Two ceremonies will be held at the end of September

In 2022, Stockholm University will hold two conferment ceremonies. The 2021 inauguration and conferment ceremony was pushed back due to the pandemic and will be held on September 29. The 2022 ceremony will be held as usual on September 30. Both ceremonies will be held in Stockholm City Hall.

To honor the jubilee doctors during the ceremony, the faculty promoter will award them with a laurel wreath and a diploma in a celebratory atmosphere.

“They will therefore be recognized in the same way as the new doctors who are conferred,” says Sandberg.

For a few years in the early 1970s, the university did not hold a joint ceremony for all faculties. Anyone receiving a doctorate at that time was therefore not part of a conferment ceremony.

“The university has decided to depart from tradition and is inviting everyone who received a doctorate fifty years ago to now be conferred to jubilee doctors. Every year, it takes a bit of detective work to find out how we can reach everyone concerned. The reactions among the invitees have been very positive! There are a number who have not heard anything from their university for a very long time, and they are both surprised and happy to be remembered and invited to the party. Some will be unable to attend due to failing health, but they appreciate being conferred "in absentia" and will have the diploma sent to them afterwards,” says Sandberg.

 

The ceremony returned in 1974

John Fürstenbach was commissioned to organize the first conferment ceremony after the break in the early 1970s. He had been a teaching assistant (“amanuens”) at the Department of Business Administration and from 1972, he was employed full-time in the administration.

John Fürstenbach worked with the conferment ceremony in the 1970s and 1980s
John Fürstenbach, pictured here from 1973, worked with the conferment ceremony in the 1970s and 1980s.

“President Dag Norberg contacted me and wanted to see a conferment ceremony before the summer of 1974, after which he would resign. ‘Here is the timetable from 1969’, he said and handed over a stack of papers. It was just a matter of getting started,” recalls John Fürstenbach.
He had to call City Hall quickly and book a date, contact musicians and find out if the florist who used to make laurel wreaths was still available, among other things.
“We got it together, everyone, including the President, was happy.”

Fürstenbach believes that no conferment ceremony was held for the first four years of the 1970s due to the spirit of the times.

“Academic ceremonies were considered antiquated. That opinion was shared somewhat everywhere, among students, graduate students and teachers. There were those who believed that such ceremonies perpetuated academic privilege, while others highlighted that the ceremony no longer had any formal basis.”

“Some faculty associations were also closed down in those years. The students got involved politically instead,” says John Fürstenbach.

Conferment ceremony in 2018.

A new feature of the 1974 ceremony was that it was the only ceremony to adopt a dress code requiring a suit. During previous and subsequent ceremonies, a tailcoat was required.

“It was a kind of adaptation to the spirit of the times,” says John Fürstenbach, who continued to work with the ceremony until the end of the 1980s.

Nowadays, being conferred to doctor or jubilee doctor at a conferment ceremony is completely voluntary, however not for honorary doctorates.

“Personally, I think that these rites of passage have a lot of meaning for people, it touches something deep inside us. They mark important milestones in life, a task you have accomplished. And being able to celebrate it together with others who are members of academia is important,” says Fürstenbach.

 

The number of jubilee doctors increases every year

More than 170 jubilee doctorates have been awarded at Stockholm University since Anne Heikkinen Sandberg became Master of ceremonies in 2012. The number increases every year.

“Previously, there were approximately ten people per year. In 2022, when we will hold three celebrations, roughly 80 jubilee doctors will be conferred. I think that the jubilee doctors are wonderful! They have lived long lives, share anecdotes and stories with a twinkle in their eye, and are friendly and humble. They also show tremendous gratitude for being remembered and honored,” says Sandberg.