dean
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dean
The head of a faculty at a university or college. This person is responsible for the organization and administration of the faculty.
Der Dekan der medizinischen Fakultät eröffnete die Konferenz.
The dean of the medical faculty opened the conference.
dean
A priest in the Catholic or Protestant church who heads a deanery. A deanery is an association of several parishes.
Der Bischof ernannte einen neuen Dekan für den Kirchenbezirk.
The bishop appointed a new dean for the church district.
The context makes clear which meaning of 'Dekan' (dean) is meant. Words like 'Fakultät' (faculty), 'Universität' (university), or 'Professor' point to the higher education context, while 'Kirche' (church), 'Bischof' (bishop), or 'Pfarrei' (parish) indicate the church meaning.
Der Dekan der juristischen Fakultät hält die Eröffnungsrede.
The dean of the law faculty is giving the opening speech.
The word 'Dekan' (dean) belongs to formal language and is used almost exclusively in the institutional context of universities or the church. It occurs rarely in everyday language.
Für die Genehmigung ist die Unterschrift des Dekans erforderlich.
The dean's signature is required for approval.
In a university setting, a dean is often 'gewählt' (elected) or 'leitet' (heads) a faculty. Typical formulations are 'zum Dekan gewählt werden' (to be elected dean) and 'der Dekan einer Fakultät sein' (to be the dean of a faculty).
Professor Meier wurde für zwei Jahre zum Dekan gewählt.
Professor Meier was elected dean for two years.
In a church context, a dean 'steht' a deanery 'vor' (heads a deanery) or is 'ernannt' (appointed) by a higher authority such as the bishop. A typical action is that the dean 'visitiert' (officially visits) a congregation.
Der Dekan steht dem Kirchenbezirk Nord vor.
The dean heads the northern church district.
rector
“Rektor” refers to the person who heads and represents a university or institution of higher education as a whole. “Dekan,” by contrast, heads only one faculty within that institution. When referring to the leadership of the entire institution, use “Rektor”; for the organization of a single faculty, “Dekan” is correct.
Der Dekan informierte die Studierenden über die neuen Regeln der Fakultät.
The dean informed the students about the faculty’s new rules.
Der Rektor vertrat die Universität bei der Eröffnung des neuen Gebäudes.
The rector represented the university at the opening of the new building.
