Blog posts

Head of the Department of Physics 

Professor Stefan Soldner-Rembold has accepted the appointment as Head of the Department of Physics for a term of five years, with effect from 1 April 2024. To facilitate a smooth transition, Professor Soldner-Rembold will start shadowing the current Head of Department, Professor Michele Dougherty, who has accepted an extension to her term until 31 December 2024.

Reporting to the Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, as Head of the Department, Professor Soldner-Rembold will provide strategic vision, direction and leadership to Physics and ensure that appropriate plans, management, and governance processes, are in place to create an outstanding and effective academic environment for staff and students.

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Dean of the Faculty of Medicine

Professor Deborah Ashby has accepted the appointment as Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, for a term of five years, effective from 1 January 2024.  Professor Ashby has been the interim Dean since 1 August 2023 following Professor Jonathan Weber’s retirement as Dean. 

Reporting to the Provost, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine is responsible for all aspects of the Faculty’s strategy, operations and finances. As Dean, Professor Ashby will also be a member of Imperial’s Council and its University Management Board (UMB).  

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Acting Head of the Department of Earth Science and Engineering

Professor Gareth Collins has accepted the role of Acting Head of Department of Earth Science and Engineering between the period of 1 November 2023 and 28 February 2024.  This is to provide cover for the current Head of the Department, Professor Tina van De Flierdt, while she will be away conducting fieldwork in the Antarctic.

Professor Collins joined Imperial in 2004 as a Research Fellow, after obtaining his PhD in Geology from Imperial in 2002. He was promoted to Senior Lecturer (2011), Reader (2014) and to Professor of Planetary Science in 2018.

Gareth’s research explores the many consequences of collisions in the solar system through the development and application of numerical impact models. Major research contributions include studies of the formation of the Chicxulub impact crater and its role in the K-Pg mass extinction, as well as the formation of many other craters on Earth, the Moon and the role of collisions in the early solar system. He was a co-investigator on the NASA-led InSight mission to Mars and on the Science Investigations Teams of NASA’s DART mission and ESA’s Hera mission.

Head of the Department of Chemistry 

Professor Oscar Ces has accepted an extension to his appointment as Head of the Department of Chemistry until 31 July 2026. Professor Ces is the Hofmann Chair of Chemistry and has been Head of the Department since August 2019.

Professor Ces first joined Imperial in 1997 as a PhD student in the Department of Chemistry. He then held a postdoctoral fellowship and research lectureship in the department before being promoted to Senior Lecturer, Reader and Professor between 2010 and 2016.

Professor Ces’ research interests focus on biomembrane engineering, drug-membrane interactions, biomimicry, soft condensed matter, chemical biology, microfluidics, artificial cells, single cell analysis and lipid membrane mechanics.

Chief Information Officer

Following a full external search, Jenny Rae has accepted appointment as Chief Information Officer with effect from 26 October 2023.

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, in this role Jenny will lead the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) division and be responsible for all aspects of Imperial’s Technology Strategy which will support the organisation to realise its digital ambitions.

Jenny took on the role of Acting Chief Information Officer in August 2023, and previously held the role of Director of Digital Products at Imperial since January 2022. Prior to joining Imperial, Jenny worked at Found Tech as Chief Operations Officer, leading the product, technology and business operations functions, and held several senior roles at both Vodafone and BT Group.

Promotions

We are pleased to announce that the following staff were successful during the promotions rounds.

Academic promotions take place on an annual cycle, with promotions taking effect from 1 September 2023. Learning and Teaching promotions take place three times each year, and have taken effect on 1 October 2022, 1 January 2023 or 1 June 2023.

Business school

Department Promoted title
Renata Kosova Economics and Public Policy Professor of Economics
Ralf Martin Economics and Public Policy Professor of Economics
Mirabelle Muuls Economics and Public Policy Associate Professor in Economics
Stephan Axel Seiler Analytics, Marketing and Operations Professor of Marketing
Michelle Rogan Amijee Management and Entrepreneurship Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Cristobal Juan Garcia Herrera Management and Entrepreneurship Senior Teaching Fellow
Anu Wadhwa Management and Entrepreneurship Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Pasquale Della Corte Finance Professor of Finance
Rajkamal Janakiraman Iyer Finance Professor of Finance

Faculty of Engineering

Department Promoted title
Robert William Hewson Aeronautics Professor of Multidisciplinary Design Optimisation
Luca Magri Aeronautics Professor of Scientific Machine Learning
Matthew Santer Aeronautics Professor of Aerospace Structures
Sita Rosminah Shamsuddin Aeronautics Principal Teaching Fellow
Rodrigo  Ledesma Amaro Bioengineering Reader in Synthetic Biology
Juan Alvaro Gallego Bioengineering Senior Lecturer
Parastoo Hashemi Bioengineering Reader in Brain Diagnostics and Therapeutics
Claire Elizabeth Stanley Bioengineering Senior Lecturer
Reiko Tanaka Bioengineering Professor of Computational Systems Biology & Medicine
Vijesh Jagdish Bhute Chemical Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow
James Campbell Chemical Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow
Antonio Del Rio Chanona Chemical Engineering Senior Lecturer
Maria Papathanasiou Chemical Engineering Senior Lecturer
Qilei Song Chemical Engineering Reader in Chemical Engineering
Lorenzo  Macorini Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor of Structural Engineering
Antoine Henri Roland Cully Computing Reader in Machine Learning and Robotics
Hamed Haddadi Computing Professor of Human-Centred Systems
Yingzhen Li Computing Senior Lecturer in Machine Learning
Dario Paccagnan Computing Senior Lecturer
Marek Rei Computing Senior Lecturer
Maria Valera-Espina Computing Principal Teaching Fellow
Lluis Vilanova Computing Senior Lecturer
Audrey Gaulard Dyson School of Design Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow
Mazdak Ghajari Dyson School of Design Engineering Reader
Leila Karen Sheldrick Dyson School of Design Engineering Senior Lecturer
Rebecca Stewart Dyson School of Design Engineering Senior Lecturer in Interactive Systems
Billy Wu Dyson School of Design Engineering Reader in Electrochemical Design Engineering
Zahid Ali Khan Durrani Electrical and Electronic Engineering Professor in Quantum Nanoelectronics
Adria Junyent-Ferre Electrical and Electronic Engineering Reader in Power Electronics
Christos Michael Papavassiliou Electrical and Electronic Engineering Reader in Instrumentation Electronics
Steven Wright Electrical and Electronic Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow
Rossella Arcucci Earth Science and Engineering Senior Lecturer in Data Science and Machine Learning
Rebecca Emma Bell Earth Science and Engineering Reader in Tectonics
Gerard John Gorman Earth Science and Engineering Professor of Computational Science and Engineering
Rhodri Nelson Earth Science and Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow in Computational Data Science
James Percival Earth Science and Engineering Senior Teaching Fellow
Emma Passmore Earth Science and Engineering Principal Teaching Fellow
Pablo Rafael Brito Parada Earth Science and Engineering Reader in Sustainable Minerals Processing
Adriana Paluszny Rodriguez Earth Science and Engineering Reader in Computational Geomechanics
Ifan Erfyl Lester Stephens Materials Professor in Electrochemistry
Mark Damien Sutton Earth Science and Engineering Reader in Palaeontology
Johannes Clemens Lischner Materials Professor of Theory and Simulation of Materials
Cecilia Mattevi Materials Professor of Materials Science
Ulrich N Hansen Mechanical Engineering Reader
Monica Marinescu Mechanical Engineering Reader
Ludovic Renson Mechanical Engineering Senior Lecturer
Janet Wong Mechanical Engineering Reader in Tribology and Mechanochemistry

Graduate School

Department Promoted title
Katerina Michalickova Graduate School Principal Teaching Fellow
Maria Magalena Jara Valdivia Graduate School Principal Teaching Fellow

Faculty of Medicine

Department Promoted title
Kambiz Nassirpour Alavian Brain Sciences Reader in Neuroscience
Christopher Rance Butler Brain Sciences Clinical Reader in Global Brain Health
Paul Edison Brain Sciences Professor of Neuroscience
Dasha  Nicholls Brain Sciences Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
David Ryan Jacoby Owen Brain Sciences Reader in Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Medicine
Nichola Cooper Immunology and Inflammation Professor of Immune Haematology
Alice Elizabeth Denton Immunology and Inflammation Senior Lecturer
Malgorzata Trela Immunology and Inflammation Senior Teaching Fellow
Mark Gilchrist Infectious Disease Professor of Practice
Heather Hanna Infectious Disease Senior Teaching Fellow (Postgraduate)
Pascale Kropf Infectious Disease Reader in Immunology
Alex James McCarthy Infectious Disease Senior Lecturer
Jesus  Rodriguez Manzano Infectious Disease Senior Lecturer in Diagnostics for Infectious Disease
Anna Katja Reed Infectious Disease Professor of Practice (Respiratory & Transplant Medicine)
James Alexander  Seddon Infectious Disease Professor of Global Child Health
Maria Vanesa Sancho Shimizu Infectious Disease Reader in Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases
John Tregoning Infectious Disease Professor in Vaccine Immunology
Naila Arebi Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Professor of Practice
Ines dos Santos Cebola Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer in Regulatory Genomics
Alexander Nicholas Comninos Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Professor of Practice (Endocrinology)
Zoe Lauren Hall Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Mass Spectrometry
Aaron Mitchell Lett Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Teaching Fellow
Yan Liu Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer in Glycosciences
Aida  Martinez-Sanchez Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer
Niamh Maria Martin Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Professor of Endocrinology
Bryn Myers Owen Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer
Nicholas Powell Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Professor of Gastroenterology
Makrina Savvidou Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Professor of Practice (Obstetrics and Maternal Fetal Medicine)
Andriy Shevchuk Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction Senior Lecturer
Rasha Kadem Al-Lamee National Heart and Lung Institute Clinical Reader in Cardiovascular Science
Vania Maria Martin Braga National Heart and Lung Institute Professor of Cellular Signalling
Robina Kate Coker National Heart and Lung Institute Professor of Practice (Respiratory Medicine)
Fu Siong Ng National Heart and Lung Institute Reader in Cardiac Electrophysiology
Philip Leslie Molyneaux National Heart and Lung Institute Professor of Interstitial Lung Disease
Elisabetta Renzoni National Heart and Lung Institute Professor of Practice (Respiratory Medicine)
Christopher James Rhodes National Heart and Lung Institute Reader in Pulmonary Vascular Disease
Coen Wiegman National Heart and Lung Institute Senor Teaching Fellow
Beata Wojciak-Stothard National Heart and Lung Institute Professor in Vascular Biology
Ahmed Rashid Ahmed Surgery and Cancer Clinical Reader in Metabolic Surgery
James Macalister Kinross Surgery and Cancer Reader in General Surgery
Olivier E Pardo Surgery and Cancer Reader in Cancer Cell Signalling
David James Pinato Surgery and Cancer Clinical Reader in Medical Oncology
Rohini Sharma Surgery and Cancer Professor Clinical Pharmacology and Medical Oncology
Justin Roe Surgery and Cancer Professor of Practice (Speech and Swallowing Rehabilitation)
Benjamin Barratt School of Public Health Professor in Environmental Exposures and Public Health
Abbas Dehghan School of Public Health Professor in Molecular Epidemiology
Nuno Miguel Faria School of Public Health Professor in Virus Genomic Epidemiology
Filippos Filippidis School of Public Health Reader in Public Health
Felix Edward Clovis Greaves School of Public Health Clinical Reader in Public Health
Silke Kerruth School of Public Health Senior Teaching Fellow
Robert Edward Klaber School of Public Health Professor of Practice (Population Health)
Zeinab Mulla School of Public Health Senior Teaching Fellow in Public Health
Sabita Nellamakada Uthaya School of Public Health Professor of Practice (Neonatal Medicine)
Verena Zuber School of Public Health Senior Lecturer in Biostatistics

Faculty of Natural Sciences

Department Promoted title
Jeremy Woods Centre for Environmental Policy Professor of Sustainable Development
Artem Bakulin Chemistry Reader in Physical Chemistry
Anna  Barnard Chemistry Senior Lecturer
Marco Di Antonio Chemistry Senior Lecturer
Rebecca Louise Greenaway Chemistry Senior Lecturer
Louise Jane Walport Chemistry Senior Lecturer
Doryen Althea Bubeck Life Sciences Professor in Structural Immunology
Abigail  Clements Life Sciences Senior Lecturer
Tiago Rafael Dias da Costa Life Sciences Senior Lecturer in Bacterial Pathogenesis
Dorian Guzu Life Sciences Learning Technologist
Gerald Jean-Paul Larrouy-Maumus Life Sciences Reader in Molecular Microbiology
Samraat Pawar Life Sciences Professor of Theoritical Ecology
William David Pearse Life Sciences Reader in Evolutionary Ecology
James Lloyd Rosindell Life Sciences Professor of Biodiversity Theory
Tony David Southall Life Sciences Reader in Molecular Genetics
Joseph Andrew Tobias Life Sciences Professor of Biodiversity & Ecosystems
Nikolai Windbichler Life Sciences Reader in Genetics
Jose Jimenez Zarco Life Sciences Reader in Synthetic Biology
Dante Kalise Balza Mathematics Reader in Computational Optimisation and Control
Ajay Chandra Mathematics Senior Lecturer
Davoud Cheraghi Mathematics Reader in Pure Mathematics
David Anthony Ham Mathematics Professor of Computational Mathematics
Nikolaos Kantas Mathematics Reader in Statistics
Yanki Lekili Mathematics Professsor of Geometry
Antoine Jacquier Mathematics Professor of Mathematics
Eyal Neumann Mathematics Reader in Mathematics
Ioanna Papatsouma Mathematics Senior Teaching Fellow in Statistics
Martin Rasmussen Mathematics Professor of Mathematics
Pierre-Francois Rodriguez Mathematics Senior Lecturer in Pure Mathematics
Travis Jeremy Schedler Mathematics Professor of Mathematics
Ewelina Turkedjiev (Zatorska) Mathematics Reader in Applied and Numerical Analysis
Simon Nicholas Bland Physics Professor of Plasma Physics
William Richard Branford Physics Professor of Solid State Physics
Paulo Andres Ceppi Physics Senior Lecturer in Climate Science
Jonathan Eastwood Physics Professor of Space Physics
Johannes Knolle Physics Reader in Quantum Simulation and Computation of Materials
Michael Andrew McCann Physics Senior Lecturer in Flavour Physics
Daniel John Mortlock Physics Professor of Astrophysics and Statistics
Mitesh Patel Physics Professor of Physics
Masoud Seifikar Physics Senior Strategic Teaching Fellow

Director of the School of Public Health

Professor Neil Ferguson has accepted appointment as Director of the School of Public Health in the Faculty of Medicine, with effect from 1 August 2023 for a term of five years.    

Reporting to the Interim Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Professor Ferguson will provide strategic vision, direction and leadership to the School of Public Health and will ensure that appropriate plans, management and governance structures and practices are in place.  

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Acting Chief Information Officer

Jenny Rae has taken up the role of Acting Chief Information Officer for an initial period of 6 months, contingent on the appointment of the substantive post holder. 

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, in this role Jenny will lead the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) division and be responsible for all aspects of Imperial’s Technology Strategy which will support the organisation to realise its digital ambitions. 

Jenny has been Director of Digital Products at Imperial since January 2022. She previously worked at Found Tech as Chief Operations Officer, leading the product, technology and business operations functions.  Prior to this, Jenny held several senior roles at both Vodafone and BT Group. 

Vice-Dean (Research), Faculty of Natural Sciences

Professor Ramon Vilar has accepted appointment as Vice-Dean (Research) for the Faculty of Natural Sciences, with effect from 1 October 2023, for a term of five years.  

Reporting to the Dean, in this role Professor Vilar will be a member of the faculty leadership team, and work closely with the Dean and the research strategy team. His responsibilities will include supporting the development of strategic research priorities, raising the quality and impact of the research undertaken across the faculty, and sustaining and diversifying research funding. 

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