The internationally renowned physician and professor at The Ohio State University, Dukagjin Blakaj, will also join the academic staff of the University of Prishtina (UP)

At its 21st session held on October 29, 2025, the Senate of the University of Prishtina approved, upon the proposal of Rector Arben Hajrullahu, the affiliation of Professor Dukagjin Blakaj from The Ohio State University with the University of Prishtina.

Professor Blakaj, who will work part-time at the Faculty of Medicine, is the second professor from our academic diaspora to be affiliated with the University of Prishtina.

The radiation oncologist, who heads the Department of Head and Neck Radiation Oncology at The Ohio State University, is affiliating with the University of Prishtina based on the Regulation on Transfer, the 'Brain Gain' program, and provisions for extraordinary academic recruitment needs, which was approved by the UP Senate on April 30, 2025.

Professor Blakaj completed his undergraduate studies in chemistry, molecular biology, and biophysics at Wesleyan University in Connecticut. He earned his medical degree (M.D.) at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, where he also received a Master's degree in biochemistry and completed his doctorate. He is a professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at The Ohio State University's Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute in Columbus, Ohio.

Professor Blakaj is the author and co-author of numerous scientific publications in his fields of interest, which include various tumors, experimental therapies for these diseases, radiology, and more. He believes that cancer can only be ultimately defeated through teamwork.

On September 30, 2025, the Senate of the University of Prishtina also decided to affiliate Professor Gëzim Visoka with UP. Professor Visoka is a professor at Dublin City University who is also associated with the University of Oxford.

The affiliation of professors of international stature and high academic integrity, such as Blakaj and Visoka, with the University of Prishtina—for example, through lectures, research development, and scientific collaborations—will help ensure UP keeps pace with the rapid developments of our time.