Dies Academicus 2026

Traditional academic ceremony Dies Academicus 2026 highlighted the importance of education, collaboration, and responsibility, which Masaryk University has long been fostering. The festive program also included the presentation of the MU Rector's Awards, with our doctoral students and PhD graduates among the recipients. 

🏆 The MU Rector's Award for Outstanding Students in Doctoral Degree Programmes was awarded to:

• Anoop Kumar Yadav – Specializes in molecular and cellular biology and genetics. Already in the third year of his doctoral studies, he achieved an extraordinary success by publishing two groundbreaking papers as the first author in the leading international journals Journal of Cell Biology and Nature Communications.
• Mgr. Anna Blechová – An expert in cybersecurity in outer space, she was awarded the prestigious Fulbright-Masaryk scholarship for research in the USA and regularly represents as a member of the legal team at the elite international cyber exercise NATO Locked Shields.
• Mgr. Andrea Stašek – A researcher in health psychology with excellent methodological competence, she successfully bridges academia with practice and, on her own initiative, brought the crucial topic of sexual and gender minorities' mental health to the Institute for Psychological Research at the Faculty of Social Studies, MU.

🏆 The MU Rector's Award for an Outstanding Doctoral Thesis was awarded to:

• Marcos González López, MSc., Ph.D. – Developed an innovative methodological approach for tracking bone and tooth mineralization in vivo, publishing the results of this pioneering research as the first author in the prestigious journal Science Advances. (The award was accepted on his behalf by his supervisor, Assoc. Prof. Jan Křivánek)
• Mgr. Jana Nenadalová, Ph.D. – Brought a highly innovative perspective on the formation of religious experiences and, using experimental psychological methods (e.g., within "darkness therapy"), clarified the processes behind the human perception of the presence of beings.
• Mgr. Nikol Kvardová, Ph.D. – Successfully completed her studies summa cum laude for her research on the impact of appearance-focused social media on adolescents' body image, with her findings being crucial for developing effective preventive measures in the online environment.

Huge congratulations to all the awardees! Their achievements showcase the breadth and quality of doctoral research at MU, proving that the university's young scientists can compete at the highest international level.