Springman Sarah M
Professor
Dept. of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering
ETH Zürich - Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich
Switzerland
Biography
Sarah Marcella Springman has been Full Professor for Geotechnical Engineering at ETH Zurich since January 1997 and Rector of the university since January 2015. Born in London in 1956, Professor Springman studied soil mechanics at Cambridge University before embarking on a career in industry. She worked for five years as an engineer on several geotechnical projects in England, Fiji, and Australia before returning to Cambridge, where she earned her PhD in 1989 and established an academic career as a lecturer. She has been a full professor at the ETH Zurich Institute for Geotechnical Engineering since 1997, heading the institute from 2001 to 2005 and again from 2009 to 2011. Professor Springman also served as the Director of the ETH Zurich Network for Natural Hazards from 2007 to 2009 and as Joint Deputy Head of the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering from 2013 to 2014.
Research Interest
Her research interests focus on soil-structure interaction and the geotechnical aspects of natural hazards, in particular landslides and melting permafrost. She uses geotechnical modelling to develop solutions that can improve the design of structures.
