Vice-Rectors Vice-Rector for International Cooperation

Prof. Dr. Ivan Chorbev was born in 1980.

He completed his undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies (Computer Engineering, Informatics and Automation) at the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje in 2004. As the top graduate of the Faculty, in 2005 he was awarded the prestigious “Engineering Ring” (Gold Ring), conferred by the Engineering Institution of Macedonia. Following graduation, he gained his initial professional experience by working for two years as a Software Engineer at a telecommunications company. He completed his master’s studies in Computer Engineering at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies (FEIT) at UKIM in 2006, and his doctoral studies in Computer Science and Engineering at FEIT at UKIM in 2009. Following the completion of his doctoral studies, he undertook a research fellowship at TU Wien (Vienna University of Technology).

Since 2005, he has been engaged as teaching and research staff, and he currently holds the academic rank of Full Professor. He has served as Head of the Institute of Software Engineering at the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering (FINKI) at UKIM. His international academic experience also includes serving as a Visiting Professor at SRH University in Berlin, Germany. He is also an accredited doctoral supervisor at FINKI and has supervised five doctoral candidates.

He was elected twice to serve as Dean of the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering (FINKI), leading the Faculty continuously from 2015 to 2022. During his terms of office, he led a rapidly growing institution, contributing to the development of its educational programs, international projects, and strategic positioning.

He has served as President of the Management Board of the Macedonian Academic Research Network (MARnet). He has also served as a member of the Board for Accreditation of Higher Education of the Republic of North Macedonia, as well as a member of the National Textbook Commission at the Ministry of Education and Science.

He is actively involved in the development of the innovation ecosystem and in collaboration with industry. Since 2019, he has been a member of the Management Board of the UKIM Business Accelerator, where he represents the University in corporate governance and the evaluation of startups. From 2018 to 2022, he served as an expert evaluator for the North Macedonian Fund for Innovation and Technology Development and the Serbian Innovation Fund, evaluating more than 120 projects. Throughout his career, he has also developed and implemented complex software and ERP systems for leading companies in the region and worldwide, as well as software systems at the national level.

Prof. Dr. Ivan Chorbev has led the development of key information systems supporting the digitalization of higher education. Since 2010, he has served as Project Manager for the development of iKnow, an integrated university information system implemented at several public universities. He has extensive experience as an international consultant in developing ICT strategies and technical specifications for government institutions and organizations, including UNICEF, UNFPA, IOM, the OSCE, the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia, and the State Election Commission.

He has led and actively participated in the implementation of more than 20 international research projects funded by the European Union, including projects under Digital Europe, Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, TEMPUS, FP6, and FP7.

To date, he has published more than 140 scientific and professional papers in international journals and conference proceedings. His research encompasses the fields of software engineering, machine learning, data science, telemedicine, and heuristic optimization. As part of socially oriented projects, he led the development of educational games for children with disabilities, supported by USAID. In recognition of his professional and scientific contributions, he has attained the status of IEEE Senior Member. In addition, he regularly contributes to the organization of renowned scientific conferences, where he has also served as a conference chair.

His current areas of research interest include artificial intelligence, big data analytics, e-health, and Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) systems.