The race to become the next president of UCC has narrowed to a contest between two senior medical academics. UCC hopes to announce a successor to its controversial president, Prof Gerry Wrixon, today.
Last night, Prof Michael Murphy, head of the college's medical and health unit, was regarded as the clear favourite.
But the professor of medicine, Fergus Shanahan , was also interviewed yesterday by the 10-member selection team - chaired by former Dublin City manager John Fitzgerald.
Both of the leading candidates are 53. A UCC graduate, Prof Murphy, is noted for his diplomatic and social skills. A former dean of the medicine school at UCC, he also has extensive experience in the US.
Prof Shanahan, the director of both the BioSciences Institute and the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, works in an area which has attracted huge amounts of research funding to UCC.
Both candidates have been successful in distancing themselves from the bitter internal battles over the Wrixon presidency which have dominated UCC for the past five years.
Meanwhile, an investigation into alleged financial mismanagement and bullying of staff at UCC is continuing. The inquiry is being conducted by John Malone, a former secretary general at the Department of Agriculture and Food - at the request of the UCC governing authority.
UCC hopes the appointment of the new president, who takes up his post in February, will mark the end of the internal strife on the campus.
Prof Wrixon has accused his critics within the college of running a personalised campaign against him. But his opponents accuse him of a confrontational and autocratic management style.
In recent years, UCC's debt has spiralled to almost €40 million, although some believe it could even be more. Attention has also focused on its decision to proceed with a new IT building for which funding has still to be formally approved by the department.
Prof Wrixon's decision to step down was a major surprise. It came shortly after he secured an unprecedented five-year extension of service on his 65th birthday last year, despite vigorous opposition from many academics in the university.
He is arguably the most controversial figure in Irish education. He has earned plaudits from several Government Ministers, including Mary Harney and Minister for Education Mary Hanafin for his restructuring efforts in Cork.
Prof Wrixon was seen as a new-style "pro-business" university chief, determined to accelerate the pace of change in the traditionally conservative college sector.
But his restructuring programme proved hugely divisive in Cork and unleashed a storm of protest and various legal actions.
The restructuring was opposed by the academic council at the university and led to an unprecedented protest by about 30 academics during an RTÉ News special last year.
