UCD has become the latest Irish university to appoint a female president.
Professor Orla Feely, who is currently Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact at the university, will take up office at the start of May.
Her appointment comes just three years after the country's first female university president was appointed.
In 2020, Professor Kerstin Mey became President of University of Limerick.
Maynooth University and Trinity College are also now led by women, as are three of the country’s new technological universities; Munster Technological University, South-East Technological University, and Atlantic Technological University.
Prof Feely succeeds Professor Mark Rogers who has been Acting President at UCD since March 2022.
Her appointment for a ten-year term was approved by UCD's governing authority today.
Chair of the Authority Marie O'Connor described Professor Feely as "an outstanding university leader with a distinguished academic track record in research and teaching who has already greatly contributed to the reputation of University College Dublin as a centre of excellence".
Prof Rogers described her as "a great colleague whose pride, loyalty, support and ambition for UCD has always been evident".
As Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact, and a Professor in Electronic Engineering at UCD, Prof Feely has been a member of the university management team since 2014.
The university said that under her leadership, annual research grants, publications, citation impact and innovation success for UCD had substantially increased, with major initiatives in areas such as sustainability, food, quantum technologies and personalised medicine.
It said Prof Feely had also championed the advancement of women in UCD through the development and delivery of gender equality action plans, which had secured awards for the university.
Prof Feely holds a BE in electronic engineering from University College Dublin, as well as a Masters and PhD qualification from the University of California, Berkeley.
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris welcomed Prof Feely's appointment, describing it as a "huge personal achievement for her" as well as a "significant milestone" for UCD.
"There have been improvements in addressing the gender imbalance in higher education in recent years and today is another major milestone," Minister Harris said.
"I hope it sends a strong message to everyone involved in the higher education sector and beyond - a message of inclusion, equality and opportunity for all."
On 6 March, Maynooth University plans to celebrate International Women's Day with an event featuring all of the country's female university presidents.
