Blog posts

Dr Piers Gaffney, Research Associate, Department of Chemical Engineering

“The opportunity to work at Imperial has attracted some of the best young talents in the world to our team – they are the very bedrock on which our achievements are built.”

I received my BSc from Imperial in the 1980s, but then undertook a Master’s at Durham studying pyrophoric boranes, before returning to London and King’s College London to obtain my PhD in organic chemistry. Here I studied the synthesis of signalling phospholipids, and this became the key to my current position with Professor Livingston in the Department of Chemical Engineering. (more…)

Dr Arnau Garriga Casanovas, Research Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering

“I really like being at Imperial. The best part is working alongside some of the most capable people in the world, who inspire me and make it truly enjoyable to work here.”

I came to Imperial in 2014 to do an engineering doctorate. My PhD project involved the research and development of a snake-robot to perform inspections of jet engines while the engine is on-wing, and was sponsored by Rolls-Royce. It was a really interesting project, where I conducted research on different types of miniature snake-robots – mostly concentric tube robots and soft robots. (more…)

Solvita Petrauska, Welcome Host, Security Services

“I feel privileged to welcome Imperial’s guests and to be their first point of contact when entering the College, and it is a pleasure to assist them with their enquiries.”

My journey at Imperial started eight years ago when I joined as a Catering Assistant. I loved my job at the Library Café and I particularly enjoyed being a part of a large team working in a customer-oriented environment. (more…)

Dr Yonghua Yin, Research Associate, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

I work as a Research Associate in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Imperial. I received the President’s PhD Scholarship in 2014 and completed my PhD in electrical engineering at Imperial last year. Before this, I completed my undergraduate and Master’s in engineering at Sun Yat-sen University in China. (more…)

Dr May Sule, Research Associate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

I was born and raised in Nigeria, where I studied Chemical Engineering at undergraduate level at the University of Lagos, and then worked in the water sector. I moved to the UK in 2007 for my MSc at Newcastle University and two years later, started my PhD in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial. My focus was investigating the removal of contaminants from water using a pervaporative membrane filtration process. (more…)

Gilda Trapani, Timetabling Support Assistant, Registry

I graduated in Translation and Interpreting in Italy, and worked as a translator for a few years. When I fell in love with Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), I moved to the UK and worked for Kaplan International, one of the most important language schools in London. I studied while working full time as TEFL teacher and obtained a Trinity Diploma in TESOL, which allowed me to bring my teaching skills to university. I left Kaplan to start a job as an academic English lecturer for Goldsmiths University of London. (more…)

Roy Ortiz, Team Leader, Finance Division

I joined Imperial in 1997 and after a stint in a number of varied roles, found myself in the Credit Control team. My current role as a team leader focuses on the collection and distribution of the College’s income, and I lead a team of six credit controllers. I communicate regularly with our customers, as well as across all faculties and departments within Imperial, and by continuously seeking operational excellence in all our processes and procedures. (more…)

Louise Green, Undergraduate Office Manager, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

I came to Imperial in 1987 following a stint as a manager in the hospitality industry. I knew from the first day that I liked it here. In my first two years I worked in the central admissions office and then moved to my current role in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. (more…)