- I am very happy to receive this prestigious award. The recognition gives me extra motivation and energy to continue my work. I also want to thank BI, which is set up to help young researchers like myself thrive, Samson says.
The medal is awarded to an outstanding young researcher who has provided a vital contribution to his or her field of research, and it has been awarded annually since 1995 to dissertations assessed at the University of Oslo.
Samson Esayas is now Associate Professor at BI´s Department of Law and Governance. His PhD-dissertation is an examination of how big companies like Google and Facebook collect, analyze and monetize users´ personal data in order to provide precise advertisement and the challenges this business model poses for the application of EU data protection and competition law.
- This award demonstrates the quality of Samson’s research, and I want to congratulate him on the achievement! The fact that he is doing innovative research on issues within an international field makes it all the more impressive. We are very pleased to have him as a colleague, says Head of Department for Law and Governance, Morten Kinander.
Moving forward, Esayas plans to continue to contribute to BI´s ambition of delivering top quality teaching and research at an international level, and to apply for research funding both in Norway and abroad.
- At a personal level, the award comes with the rare opportunity to meet His Majesty King Harald, which I and my family are really looking forward to, says Samson
He will receive the medal at the annual celebration of the University of Oslo September 2nd.