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09 10

ann

ual re

vie

wScottish U

niversity of the Year

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contents

the year in focus 4Introduction 6overview 8masterplan 10teaching & learning 12student success 18research & commercialisation 22working with Business 26staff success 30working with the community 34VIP visits 38honorary awards 42university appointments 46Staff and student statistics 50Financial Summary 52 executive roles & responsibilities 54donors 55

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STUDENTS BENEFIT FROM OVER £100,000 SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING

From September 2009 – August 2010 students from across the University have benefited

from over £100,000 Scholarship funding from businesses including AMEC, Bureau Veritas, KCA,

Petrofac, Poyry, Sparrows, Talisman, Technip, TOTAL, Wood Group and FMC.

UNIVERSITY CONTRIBUTES £300 MILLION TO SCOTTISH ECONOMYAn independent report by BiGGAR Economics has revealed that the University currently contributes over £300 million annually to the economy of Scotland.The total contribution to the economy of the North-east is £227.5 million every year, while the total national contribution is calculated at £302.2 million.

SUNDAY TIMES NAMES

‘SCOTTISH UNIVERSITY OF THE YEAR’

The University has been awarded the accolade of

‘Scottish University of the Year’ by The Sunday Times.

The supplement commended the University’s excellent

academic provision, consistently strong graduate

employability levels and bold, strategic masterplan.

OBESITY RESEARCH SHOWCASED AT NATIONAL EXHIBITION

An exhibit entitled “Fat Body Slim: Shape Matters!” by Dr Giovanna Bermano, members of the Institute

for Health & Welfare Research and its Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology (CORE) was

selected to exhibit at the Royal Society’s 350th Anniversary Summer Science Exhibition in London.

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the year in focusTRUMP TARTAN

Fashion Design students

from Gray’s School of Art are

embarking on a project to

create a corporate tartan for

Trump International - Scotland.

UNIVERSITY COURSE IS FIRST IN UK TO ACHIEVE GLOBAL ACCREDITATIONAberdeen Business School is the very first UK institution to achieve accreditation from the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Global Accreditation Center.

UNIVERSITY FOCUSES ON BIG IDEASThe University launched a new institute

dedicated to research in Innovation, Design and Sustainability (IDEAS).

IDEAS is already providing a unique base to further research into areas such as renewables,

creative industries, digital economy and the environment.

UNIVERSITY RECEIVES £40,000 TO IMPROVE LEARNING AROUND MENTAL HEALTH NURSINGThe School of Nursing and Midwifery, in partnership with NHS Grampian Mental Health Services, has been granted £40,000 to develop nurse education practices that will ultimately improve services for mental health service users.

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Introduction

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This Annual Review marks the end of my three-year term as Chair of Robert Gordon University’s Board of Governors and it is with real pride that I look back at the University’s achievements during this period.

The last three years have seen the University consolidate its position as one of the top modern universities in the UK and consistently be in the top five UK universities for graduate employment. In addition, Robert Gordon University is the best modern university in Scotland for research, with over 70% of its research being classified as of international quality. I was particularly proud when The Sunday Times recently recognised the University as ‘The Scottish University of the Year 2011’.

This success is down to the staff and how they interact with the students, external stakeholders, and indeed each other. My fellow Governors and I make no claim to have done anything other than lend background support to the leadership team in the way they have managed and led the University. Everyone at Robert Gordon University should be very proud of what has been achieved.

THE LAST THREE YEARS HAVE SEEN THE UNIVERSITY CONSOLIDATE ITS POSITION AS ONE OF THE TOP MODERN UNIVERSITIES IN THE UK AND CONSISTENTLY BE IN THE TOP FIVE UK UNIVERSITIES FOR GRADUATE EMPLOYMENT.

The role of the Governors is to ensure that this ability to perform and deliver is matched by self confidence and aspiration. The University is in excellent shape and I have every confidence that it will continue to excel and successfully rise to the challenges it will face in the coming years.

I wish all those involved with this great University the very best for 2011 and a successful ongoing future.

MELFORT CAMPBELLPRO-CHANCELLOR AND CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS

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While this review details the successes and achievements of the past year, it has also been a challenging time, not least because of the sad loss of our Principal, Professor Mike Pittilo, who passed away in February 2010. We take with us the lasting impact of his commitment to the institution while looking to the future to ensure the University’s continued success.

I hope you will enjoy reading the review and if there are any aspects of it you would like to know more about, please do not hesitate to contact me.

PROFESSOR JOHN HARPERACTING-PRINCIPAL AND VICE-CHANCELLOR

Throughout this review you will see evidence of the University’s strong commitment to business in the North-east and beyond. Indeed, an independent report recently revealed that the University contributes over £300 million annually to the economy of Scotland. This, along with the high priority we place on engaging with and improving the lives of people in the local community, will ensure that Robert Gordon University continues to have a lasting and meaningful impact, both locally and nationally.

Our students have continued to flourish on a myriad of fronts including international sporting successes, winning prestigious prizes in industry and community settings, and being recognised for their contribution to research. The majority of our students carry out industry placements and their valued contribution to the placement provider often results in an offer of employment by these organisations after graduation, a student achievement the University is extremely proud of.

It has been another excellent year for Robert Gordon University culminating in The Sunday Times awarding us the accolade of ‘Scottish University of the Year 2011’. This award was in recognition of the University’s development since its formation in 1992 to become ‘one of higher education’s shining stars’. This includes a graduate employment record which has consistently been one of the best in the UK over the last decade and our commitment to invest in our masterplan.

The University’s Estates masterplan continues to progress with the detailed planning application for a 34,000m2 development at Garthdee being approved by Aberdeen City Council in 2010. The new facilities will all be based at the Garthdee Campus and will include a new library, and formal and informal learning and social spaces for students. Phase 1 of the masterplan will be complete by 2013.

IT IS WITH GREAT PLEASURE THAT I INTRODUCE THE 2009/10 ANNUAL REVIEW.

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overview

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UNIVERSITY CONTINUES TO GROW GARTHDEE CAMPUS

The University’s detailed planning application for a 34,000m2 development, which will cost £170 million, was approved by Aberdeen City Council early in 2010.

The development will be connected to the existing Faculty of Health and Social Care, which neighbours RGU: SPORT and Aberdeen Business School.

The new development will see all of the University’s academic activities located at the Garthdee campus within state-of-the-art teaching and learning facilities, including a new library, as well as formal and informal learning and social spaces for students. It will also allow staff and students from different disciplines to benefit from co-located inter-disciplinary working in a manner that has previously not been possible with two separate locations.

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masterplan

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teaching & learning

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NEW CONSTRUCTION DISPUTE RESOLUTION QUALIFICATION LAUNCHED

The Department of Law has launched a new qualification as part of its highly successful online LLM/MSc Construction Law and Arbitration course, and students on the Masters course are now able to obtain a formal qualification in Construction Adjudication in an interactive online environment.

Adjudication is a popular method of dispute resolution in the UK construction industry and provides for a fast-track and specialist resolution of disputes which often arise in the context of time-critical construction contracts.

An experienced adjudicator will deliver on the practice and procedure of adjudication, including decision writing, while specialist staff will develop and deliver the law content.

COURSE IS FIRST IN UK TO ACHIEVE GLOBAL ACCREDITATION

Aberdeen Business School is leading the way in project management education, as the very first UK institution to achieve accreditation from the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Global Accreditation Center.

Aberdeen Business School’s MSc Project Management programme is already highly regarded by employers, assessment bodies and academics alike, and this accolade from one of the world’s leading project management organisations sets it apart from similar courses elsewhere in the UK.

FIRST IN UK TO GAIN IMECHE APPROVAL FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT MODULES

A suite of engineering and business Masters-level modules has been approved by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) for use in Further Learning Plans for both individuals and companies working towards Chartered Engineer registration. The University is the first in the UK to have been awarded this approval.

The suite comprises 18 modules that are currently delivered at the School of Engineering and 13 from Aberdeen Business School. Each module has been deemed to meet the requisite content, academic level and academic rigour expected of an approved individual Further Learning Plan for registration with the IMechE. The suite can, therefore, provide a framework of Masters level modules from which an applicant might develop an individual Further Learning Plan for Chartered Engineer registration.

SUNDAY TIMES NAMES ‘SCOTTISH UNIVERSITY OF THE YEAR’

The University has been awarded the accolade of Scottish University of the Year by The Sunday Times.

The supplement commended the University’s excellent academic provision, consistently strong graduate employability levels and bold, strategic masterplan.

The Sunday Times highlighted the University’s “flourishing reputation for research” and “high student satisfaction rates”, but explained that it is the University’s exceptional graduate employment record that sets it apart from its peers. Last year just 3.6% of the University’s graduates were unemployed six months after collecting their degree, ranking it second among multi-faculty institutions in the UK.

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UNIVERSITY AND ABERDEEN COLLEGE SECURE SIX-FIGURE GRANT FOR SKILLS PROJECT

The University and Aberdeen College secured £255,000 in a competitive process led by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), to achieve higher workplace productivity through businesses and organisations fully utilising employees’ skills. The project also aims to identify employees’ potential to develop new skills to further increase the effectiveness of the business.

The project focuses on the oil and gas sector. It began with a research phase to fully understand the lack of correlation between increased levels of skills and increased productivity. The research outcome will be used to set up a number of pilot projects involving local companies which will be formally monitored and evaluated.

PUPILS BECOME OIL BARONS AT UNIVERSITY

Pupils from across the North-east of Scotland desended on the University to pit their wits against each other at Petrochallenge 2009, where they fought to become successful oil and gas operators in the UK heat of the major international competition.

Pupils from 37 secondary schools in the North- east took part in the online event which saw pupils around the world battle it out as oil barons.

Around 350 S5 and S6 pupils participated in the third annual two-day event. Formerly known as OilSim, the 2009 challenge was re-launched by OPITO – The Oil & Gas Academy, in partnership with educational specialist Simprentis, with prizes being presented at Offshore Europe.

The winning team was Aboyne Academy who went on to represent the UK in the international final in London.

PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMME RECOGNISED AT NATIONAL TRAINING AWARDS

The School of Applied Social Studies and Aberdeen Business School received the Partnership and Collaboration Award at the prestigious National Training Awards (Scotland) in Edinburgh Castle in November 2009.

The award was in recognition of ‘Leading to Deliver’, a bespoke training programme created in collaboration with The Taylor Clarke Partnership Ltd, a Glasgow based leadership and organisational development consultancy.

The Programme is a postgraduate course designed specifically to help social services managers across Scotland to focus on leadership, change, service delivery and partnership working.

MIDWIFERY VISITORS TO ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY

The School of Nursing and Midwifery played host to 28 student midwives visiting from Vroedkunde Limburg University, Belgium in May 2010.

Co-ordinated by lecturers Anne Marie Rennie and Carole Jackson, the visit allowed the Belgian cohort to enjoy a study tour and meet with representatives from both the University and NHS Grampian. It enabled students from both sides to share their experiences of midwifery and talk about their ideas for the future.

 

  

MIDWIFERY PIC TO FIND

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GRAY’S HOSTS INTERNATIONAL SUMMER SCHOOL

A host of high-profile international artists visited Aberdeen when Gray’s School of Art launched its first Printmaking Summer School in 2010. North-east creatives, as well as those drawn to the events from across the globe, were able to attend a series of workshops to gain expertise from innovators in printmaking. As a pilot to this, New York artist and educator, Dan Welden, provided a taster session at Peacock Visual Arts, Castle Street. A number of other leading artists, including Don Messec, director of Makingartsafely in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Elspeth Lamb, a Scottish artist who works with papermaking and traditional Japanese woodblock printing, attended the event.

FROM SUBSEA TO SPACE SCHOOL

Gray’s School of Art lecturer Sue Fairburn played a key role in Skills Development Scotland’s Scottish Space School visit to Houston, Texas in November 2009, as 14 young people from across Scotland were given the chance to visit NASA’s Space Centre.

As a Design Advisor to Skills Development Scotland (SDS), Sue is working to develop a new model for the Scottish Space School and sees some big opportunities for the North-east of Scotland to become more involved.

S5 pupils and four Modern Apprentices took part in the Space School and were selected on the basis of their academic abilities, career interests, and interpersonal skills. As well as visiting NASA’s Space Centre, they had the chance to rub shoulders with astronauts, engineers, and flight surgeons at a variety of events and workshops.

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH CURTIN UNIVERSITY

Professor Jill Downie, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Health Sciences at Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Western Australia, visited the University in September 2009.

The University has developed a working relationship over a number of years between the two institutions’ respective health faculties.

During the visit, Professor Downie signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the development of academic co-operation, with former Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mike Pittilo.

The two institutions hope to co-operate in an exchange of information in teaching and research fields of mutual interests as well as promoting appropriate joint research projects and providing opportunities for student exchanges.

Sue Fairburn

UNIVERSITY RECEIVES £40,000 TO IMPROVE LEARNING AROUND MENTAL HEALTH NURSING

The School of Nursing and Midwifery, in partnership with NHS Grampian Mental Health Services, has been granted £40,000 to develop nurse education practices that will ultimately improve services for mental health service users.

The funding from NHS Education for Scotland will enable lecturers, alongside their NHS partners, to implement and evaluate an innovative approach to learning in practice for mental health nursing students.

Whilst on placement, students will be based within two services for the duration of their studies. It is also anticipated that the relationships students develop with mental health service users will be more beneficial because they will be working together over a much longer period of time.

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NEW IT MANAGEMENT COURSE BRIDGING THE SKILLS GAP

The School of Computing has launched a new Masters course in IT Management, designed to fill a growing shortage of technical leadership skills across all sectors.

With the need for skilled IT professionals already outstripping demand, market analysis has shown that this is going to continue to increase in the UK for at least another five years. In particular, there is a serious shortage of skilled IT managers, and there are very few courses available that offer the blend of industry-relevant material needed by managers.

The new postgraduate course is delivered by online distance learning, supplemented with on-campus teaching days.

MSC ASSET INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT CREATES 21ST CENTURY BUSINESS LEADERS

An MSc Asset Integrity Management (AIM) has been launched by the Energy Centre. It isdesigned to equip students with the skills and competencies to manage assets using an optimised business, safety and compliance approach.

The MSc AIM, which is accredited by the Energy Institute, fulfils industry requirements for a practical course delivering the benefits of applying a life-cycle approach to asset management.

HEALTH PROFESSIONALS OF TOMORROW TAKE PIONEERING STEPS AT ABERDEEN PRISON

Two third-year students delivered life skills workshops for a group of offenders at Craiginches Prison in Aberdeen. Currently there is no occupational therapy (OT) service at Craiginches Prison but the knowledge and contribution of OT is becoming more widely recognised by many sectors, and the students’ efforts are helping to highlight this.

The role of the OT involves an integrated assessment of a person’s daily life and its context which then provides a comprehensive assessment of how and why the person may be experiencing specific problems.

In addition to the project at Craiginches, students are also supporting elderly people by working alongside Alzheimers Scotland and Inchgarth Community Centre in the local community, as well as working with people who have learning disabilities, drugs and alcohol issues, and with individuals who are in the criminal justice system.

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OBESITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME SHORT-LISTED FOR NATIONAL AWARD

‘Counterweight’, an obesity management programme led by the Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology (CORE), won the Public Policy and Service Impact Award at The Impact Awards, organised by PraxisUnico, in June 2010.

‘Counterweight’ provides an education and mentoring programme for practice nurses to upscale their knowledge and skills in the management of obesity. Staff in the programme are supported for up to a year by weight management advisors who have been specially trained in obesity management, and who form the Counterweight team in primary practice. Counterweight is also being delivered in the workplace and in the community, as well as through primary care centres.

Counterweight has proved profoundly successful, with 40% of patients followed up by the programme in Scottish health boards losing more than 5% of their body weight. This has major implications for health spending, as it reduces the risk of developing Type II diabetes alone by 50%.

This award recognises the substantial cost savings and cost avoidances associated with the programme. Indeed, a health economic analysis carried out by the York Health Economics Consortium demonstrated that it was cheaper for the NHS to implement Counterweight than do nothing at all.

NHS COLLABORATION GIVES SCHOOL PUPILS THE CHANCE TO SAMPLE CAREER PROSPECTS

Senior secondary school pupils from across the North-east attended a Nursing Summer School in July 2010 as the result of collaboration between NHS Grampian and the School of Nursing and Midwifery.

Twenty-one S4 and S5 secondary school pupils from across Aberdeen City and Shire, Fife and Lanarkshire, took part in a week-long programme which was designed as an educational experience to help interested school pupils make informed decisions about whether nursing is the right career choice for them.

Pupils learned and practised core nursing skills, gaining an insight into student life, observed nursing work within real clinical settings and interacted with professionals and patients of NHS Grampian. They also worked with members of the public who acted as volunteer patients and visited Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Woodend Hospital, Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital and Royal Cornhill Hospital.

SCOTTISH OBE AND EX-PEPSI DIRECTOR JOIN FORCES

Scottish businessman, entrepreneur and Honorary Professor of Aberdeen Business School (ABS) Charles Skene OBE and ex-Research and Development Director for Pepsi Europe, Dr John Park, have joined forces to kick-start a new initiative at the University offering all students real-life experience and tuition in entrepreneurial skills.

Professor Skene is now funding the new initiative to bring these sought-after skills to every scholar at the University. Dr Park, who also ran graduate internship programmes at Fortune 500 multi-national corporation, Procter & Gamble, will take the helm.

As well as a series of lectures, workshops and master-classes, the programme is supported by key activities including creating a unique business incubator to help students transform embryonic ideas into fully fledged business opportunities. Students are also now able to develop and run their own businesses for a year as a fully-credited industrial placement.

Dr John Park

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student success

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FASHION SHOW FOR CLAN

Third year communication and media students from Aberdeen Business School raised £13K by putting on ‘The Walk of Fame’ charity fashion show in support of CLAN in May 2010.

The students transformed the Garthdee building into the Hollywood Hills for the night, and the audience was treated to the latest summer trends, Oscar worthy evening wear and a host of live entertainment and attractions.

The show raised money for CLAN’s ‘1, 2, 3’ campaign to build a new CLAN House and Haven for families affected by cancer. The Fashion Shows have run for the last three years and raised a total of £30k.

ENGINEERING STUDENT AWARDED PRESTIGIOUS SCHOLARSHIP

Third year Mechanical and Offshore Engineering student Steven Nicol was selected from 19 candidates as the recipient of the FMC Technologies Scholarship.

He will receive a bursary of £1,750 for each of the final two years of the degree programme; vocational placements in the summers following third and fourth years, and the dedicated mentorship of a representative from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. He will also have the opportunity of employment following the successful assessment and completion of the degree programme.

SCOTT SUTHERLAND SCHOOL END OF YEAR SHOW

An award ceremony to recognise the top students at the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment launched the School’s 2010 End of Year Show in June.

One prize-winner was Master of Architecture student, Rick Burney, who received two awards - the John B. Johnstone prize for best overall student, and the Aberdeen Society of Architects (ASA) Silver Medal (jointly with fellow MArch student, Raju Noor).

The ASA Silver Medal was awarded to Rick in respect of the outstanding quality of his final year project - designs for a local produce market located within the fish processing area of Aberdeen. Rick’s project proposed the return of a lost institution, ‘A market for the city’ which would radically transform the life of the area.

Rick Burney

(l to r):

Grant Maxwell, Associate Head of the School of Engineering, Steven

Nicol and Tony Bradford, Project Engineering Group Leader at FMC.

A YEAR OF SUCCESS FOR SWIMMING SCHOLAR MILEY

Health Sciences student and RGU: SPORT scholar, Hannah Miley, has hit the big time, taking gold in the 400 metre Individual Medley (IM), finishing in 4:25.66 at the European Short Course Championships in Istanbul in December 2009.

In February 2010, Hannah performed well at the 2010 British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Long Course Swimming Championships where she took first place in the 400 and 200 metre IM events, coming in at 4:40.91 and 2:15.80 respectively – both new British Universities Record times.

Hannah also struck gold for the GB team at the European Championships in August when she swam to Championship record-breaking success in the 400m IM coming in at 4.33.09 minutes.

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A HUB FOR COMMUNITY LIFE

Student Rowan Morrice received acommendation from the Inverness Architectural Association for his fifth year architecture project which explored the development of a rural community and education facility in Lochaline, a remote village overlooking the Sound of Mull.

Rowan’s brief involved creating new facilities for the primary school and new community facilities such as a library and cafe. A new multi-purpose hall was incorporated to replace and combine the three existing halls in the village which were small, dilapidated, poorly proportioned and thus underused. Through a series of complex spatial relationships maximum use has been extracted from each square metre of building, with many spaces serving different functions to a variety of users at different times of the day.

STUDENT ATHLETES STRIKE GOLD AT OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Students, Alison Wylie and Padraig White,claimed multiple wins at the Scottish Universities Outdoor Athletics Championships in April 2010.

Third-year nutrition and dietetics student, Alison Wylie, took double gold in the 100m and 200m with personal bests of 12.60 sec and 25.95 sec (wind assisted) respectively. Alison’s success follows from her achievements in February’s Indoor Championships where she also sprinted to double gold victory in the 60m (8.04 sec) and 200m (26.68 sec).

MSc Physiotherapy student and RGU:SPORT Scholar, Padraig White, achieved a triple win in shot, hammer and discus, reaching distances of 11.80m, 62.73m and 30.91m respectively.

Padraig recently made his debut for the Aberdeen Amateur Athletic Club (AAAC) in the opening Scottish men’s track and field league meeting of the season, where he won with a personal best and city club record of 59.19m in the hammer throw.

Padraig White in action.

OUTSTANDING STUDENTS BENEFIT FROM INDUSTRY BACKING

Three recent graduates of the Masters in Project Management programme who excelled in their area of study, benefitted from a share of £5,000 in the form of the annual Balmoral Offshore Engineering Prize. 2009 was the second year running that the Aberdeen-based subsea equipment manufacturing company has sponsored the prize for Aberdeen Business School students, viewing it as an important link between industry and academia, as well as providing a real boost to students on the project management course.

Sara Kavanagh was awarded first prize and a cheque for £2,500 that will help to support her as she looks for a job in London. Her project management proposal centred around measuring the extent of the application of project governance and its relationship to project success in the oil and gas service sector.

Babatunde Odunlami and Christiana Fowode took second and third place and were awarded cheques for £1,500 and £1,000 respectively.

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RGU: SPORT SCHOLAR RETAINS BRITISH STUDENT WOMEN’S STROKE-PLAY GOLF TITLE

RGU: SPORT scholar, Jane Turner, won the British Universities and Colleges’ women’s stroke-play golf championship for the second year running in April 2010.

In June of the same year, Jane was selected to represent Great Britain and Ireland at the 13th World University Golf Championships in Malaga. Her performance in the Championships was strong, coming in joint 19th out of 53 with a total score of 317 across the four rounds (79, 83, 77, 78). Jane also took first place at the Riccarton Rosebowl, a 36-hole Scottish Ladies Golf Association (SLGA) order of merit event at Hamilton in August. She performed consistently, with 71 in the first round, followed by 72 in the second, making a total of 143.

COMPUTING STUDENT WORKS TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE OF POPULAR SEARCH ENGINE

Recent computing graduate Maryam Kontagora has found a way to improve the performance of one of the world’s leading search engines.

Using the spare cycles of the computers at the University, Maryam ran a myriad of concurrent MapReduce jobs to simulate hundreds of users searching and sorting on Google at the same time, ultimately improving the results of these searches.

Her work describes how to improve benchmarks of the search engine’s MapReduce environment on multiple virtual machines. Thousands of MapReduce jobs are executed on Google’s clusters every day, meaning lots of the searches we run on restaurants and TV shows will be executed by using a MapReduce tool.

An article based on the findings she has put together for her Masters dissertation was accepted at the IEEE International Conference on Complex, Intelligent and Software Intensive Systems (CISIS), in Krakow, in February 2010.

GRAY’S DEGREE SHOW BP FINE ART AND DESIGN AWARDS

The winner of the 2010 BP Design Award was Daniel Gear for his exploration of the debate about wind farm developments on Shetland. Daniel produced a book and video programme illustrating the views of Shetlanders who are passionately involved in both sides of the debate. Shetland Museum has requested to retain his work.

The BP Fine Art Award was won by Catherine Weir for her thought-provoking work on the construct of time and our technological society. The basis of her work was a quote from Shuji Terayama the Japanese writer and photographer that ‘people cannot see time, they can only see clocks’. Catherine’s work combines modern and obsolete technology such as a box brownie camera and candles together with digital technology.

The winners were presented with specially commissioned trophies and a cheque for £500.

In addition, Alex Gordon was highly commended in the BP Fine Art category, and Jill Patterson and Margaret Gray were both commended in the BP Design Award. Each received a cheque for £250. They were presented with their prizes at the opening night of Gray’s School of Art Degree Show 2010, sponsored by BP for the seventh year.

Tim Smith, BP’s Director of External Affairs with the winning students

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research & commercialisation

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EXHIBITION FEATURES PIONEERING UNIVERSITY RESEARCH

Two of the University’s pioneering research projects were featured in a photographic exhibition of dramatically striking images which are set to ‘change our tomorrow’ in November 2010. Where Tomorrow Begins: Reflections of Scottish Innovation showcased examples of innovation taking place in Scotland’s universities, which places them at the forefront of knowledge, research and technology, to tackle the big issues of the 21st century.

The first project aimed to address the fact that approximately three million people die annually as a result of unclean water and researchers have developed an advanced photochemical technology that could help.The process uses a material called a photocatalyst that, when illuminated with light, can completely destroy the pollutants in water. The treatment is low-energy and non-toxic offering a safe and effective solution to the global water challenge.

The second is a small portable pollution detection device featuring bright non-toxic tracers. Each tracer emits light to detect the presence and movement of pollutants - even in tiny quantities - in a variety of sites including harbours, marine and freshwater environments and sewage treatment works. The brightness of tracers means that an individual pollutant can be carefully monitored and its source of origin pinpointed, allowing scientists to prevent potentially dangerous future damage.

The exhibition was on display at the Aberdeen’s Satrosphere Science Centre as part of a national tour.

NEW TRIAL REVEALS BREAKTHROUGH IN OBESITY BATTLE

A new trial has proven that a very low calorie diet (VLCD) is far more effective at tackling obesity than conventional diets, potentially putting an end to years of losing battles among dangerously overweight Britons.

In the first of its kind, a 12 month study, carried out at the Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology (CORE), saw adult men and women with BMI greater than or equal to 35, referred to the University’s obesity clinic. They were entered into a randomized controlled clinical trial of differing dietary interventions, including the LighterLife VLCD.

Average weight loss for the LighterLife VLCD was 31kg, compared to just 4 kg on the low-carbohydrate high-protein diet. Meanwhile the conventional dieters lost an average of 18kg.

CENTRE FOR UNDERSTANDING SUSTAINABILITY IN PRACTICE LAUNCHED

The University has launched the Centre for Understanding Sustainability in Practice (CUSP) which aspires to educate and inspire people to embrace sustainable practice in their daily lives in a time where issues such as climate change and energy efficiency are at the forefront of important global issues.

To mark the occasion, esteemed broadcaster, writer and speaker Dr Gabrielle Walker, who specialises in energy and climate change, delivered an inaugural lecture, entitled ‘Sustainability and the Future’.

Dr Alan Owen, Director of CUSP, with Dr Walker

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Dr Allan Owen, Director of Cusp with Dr Walker.

A SMALL STEP FOR ACADEMICS COULD MEAN A GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND

Researchers at the School of Engineering are devising plans for a radically different type of spacecraft engine, which could one day allow conventional aeroplanes to fly into space, and replace the rocket motor as a means of escaping the Earth’s atmosphere.

Unlike traditional aerospace engines which burn fuel, this new system, which is still at the theoretical design stage, uses microwaves to generate heat - rather like a microwave oven heats food.

The main advantage of the method is that it should eventually reduce the cost of space vehicles and make them reusable and potentially cleaner. The resulting craft would look and be used like conventional aircraft.

RESEARCHER PASSES £ 1/2 MILLION GRANT INCOME MARK

Dr John G Love, from the School of Applied Social Studies, has passed a milestone in research funding with the award of a grant of £15,000 from Aberdeenshire Council Choose Life Planning Partnership to examine coping strategies amongst young people. The grant takes Dr Love’s research income to more than £500,000 and is the 27th research grant he has received since first carrying out research at the University in 1996.

Researching in the broad area of social exclusion Dr Love has examined issues of homelessness, mental health, substance misuse, young people and migration and ethnicity.

His funders have included Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Councils, NHS Grampian, Grampian Police, the Scottish Health Council and the voluntary sector.

The system is still at the stage of mathematical modelling and simulation - a process which involves working out all the equations governing the problem and programming them into a computer to simulate what will happen in reality. As such it still requires further work to solve its practical problems and make it a reality. Chief among these is providing a suitable power supply for the system, but Dr MacLeod confirmed that they are currently working on a number of possible solutions to this.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NUTRITION AND DEPRESSION DURING PREGNANCY EXPLORED

Iolanda Serci, from the School of Nursing and Midwifery, received two funding awards to support her current research which has the potential to improve maternal health and, ultimately, enhance fetal and infant health.

Entitled ‘The Relationship Between Nutrition, Increased Inflammation and Depression in Pregnancy and Following Birth: Assessment of Depression Scores, Inflammatory Cytokines and Omega-3 Fatty Acids’, Iolanda received £5,300 from the NHS Endowment fund and £1,000 from the Iolanthe Trust.

The Awards enabled Iolanda to undertake a period of research education and attend the 8th International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids Congress, ‘From Lipidomics to Human Health’, held in Kansas.

The research is ongoing as a PhD.

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SCIENTIST RECOGNISED FOR PIONEERING RESEARCH INTO WOUND-HEALING WAFERS

Olga Labovitiadi, a researcher from the School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, has been commended by a prestigious European organisation for her innovative work on the use of antimicrobial wafers to control infection in wounds.

Olga delivered her presentation at the European Wound Management Association 2010 (EWMA) annual meeting, in Geneva, Switzerland, and was presented with the award for a ‘First-time Presenter at an International Conference’.

OBESITY RESEARCH SHOWCASED AT NATIONAL EXHIBITION

An exhibit entitled “Fat Body Slim: Shape Matters!” by Dr Giovanna Bermano, members of the Institute for Health & Welfare Research and its Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology (CORE) was selected to exhibit at the Royal Society’s 350th Anniversary Summer Science Exhibition in London.

The exhibit was designed to showcase the University’s cutting-edge research in the field of obesity in a highly engaging and interactive fashion. Members of the public were able to explore this research by taking part in various body size and composition measurements using methods such as bioelectrical impedance and air-displacement analysis, otherwise known as the BodPod.

The exhibition took place at the Southbank Centre in London. Around 30,000 members of the public and 4,000 school students attended the prestigious exhibition. Dr Bermano’s exhibit was one of only 26, and was selected from over 120 applications.

The announcement of the University’s involvement in the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition follows on from recent news that the team has also received a £25,000 grant from the Scottish Government Science Engagement Fund to deliver a series of workshops to more than 10,000 teenagers in the North and North-east of Scotland. The workshops constitute one of seventeen projects funded by the Science Engagement Fund which is designed to get the public more involved and interested in science.

Her work concerns the formulation of antimicrobial wafers - freeze-dried dressings made from natural materials which look like sponge and can contain substances such as antiseptics or antibiotics.

The wafers work by absorbing all the fluid produced by the wound, while at the same time releasing the antiseptic or antibiotic to kill the bacteria in the infected wound bed.

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working with Business

The designs at Trump International - Scotland, Menie Estate, Balmedie.

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TRUMP TARTAN: GRAY’S STUDENTS WEAVE THEIR WAY INTO GLOBAL BRAND

Fashion Design students from Gray’s School of Art have embarked on a project to create a corporate tartan for Trump International - Scotland. Intended to complement the existing Trump family tartan (Macleod), the new design will be produced in association with leading Scottish manufacturers and local mills, with a view to it being used within the club house and hotel interiors at the site in Scotland. It may also be incorporated into golf wear and resort merchandise, and will become part of the identity and branding of Trump International - Scotland. Having been invited to develop initial designs, the students have been dealt the task of weaving together the Trump brand, Trump ancestry and the Trump golf vision. Their brief was to take inspiration from Donald Trump’s golf vision and passion for Scotland, using colours that reflect the North-east coastline, Trump’s worldwide portfolio and 500 years of golfing heritage.

INDUSTRY - ACADEMIA COLLABORATION SHORT-LISTED FOR ENERGY INSTITUTE AWARD

An innovative degree programme run jointly by Shell International Exploration and Production and the University was short-listed for an award at the prestigious Energy Institute Awards 2009.

The Programme enables Shell personnel to gain an MSc academic degree as part of their learning and development programme. Fifty staff have joined up since the pilot stage, studying for either MSc Well Design and Engineering or MSc Completion and Intervention Engineering. The first cohort graduated in July 2009.

RIDING THE RAPIDS

An event entitled ‘Riding the Rapids’ took place in September 2009 as a result of a global research project commissioned by PSN and McGrigors LLP, by Aberdeen Business School, to examine how some companies continue to prosper despite these times of volatility and uncertainty.

The event explored the research, addressing how oil and gas industry leaders are steering and sustaining their businesses through the current global recession. A panel of industry experts including Professor Rita Marcella, Dean of Aberdeen Business School, Tom Smith, Managing Director of Nessco and Alec Carstairs, Oil and Gas Partner at Ernst & Young, took part in the discussion which was chaired by Cheryl Paul from STV.

Cheryl Paul and Professor Marcella with the expert panel.

IT LEADERS COME TOGETHER AT UNIVERSITY

The School of Computing, in association with ScotlandIS, the trade body for the information and communications technologies industry, has formed an IT Leaders’ Forum for the North-east of Scotland.

Co-sponsored by HEAD, the IT resourcing group, and law firm McGrigors, the aim of the Forum is to grow and support a network of IT managers. The Forum will allow members to share ideas and deal with issues together, as well as receiving expert input from leaders in the field at tailored networking events.

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AMOR GROUP ENTERS EXPERTISE SHARING PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITY

Scottish business technology solutions provider Amor Group has entered into an innovative new expertise sharing partnership with the University.

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) agreement is the start of a two-year project that will bring together academic expertise in information management (IM) and the experience and skills of companies working in the energy sector.

The aim is to improve IM through sharing best practice and taking a group approach to problem solving. This innovative development helps businesses save money and represents a move away from the more common consultant led approach.

STUDENTS BENEFIT FROM OVER £100,000 SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING

From September 2009 – August 2010 students from across the University have benefited from over £100,000 Scholarship funding from businesses including AMEC, Bureau Veritas, KCA, Petrofac, Poyry, Sparrows, Talisman, Technip, TOTAL, Wood Group and FMC.

As well as funding, students receive a range of assistance including paid placements, mentoring and the opportunity to be considered for permanent employment at their Scholarship provider.

THINKING SPACE

The multi-disciplinary team at the University’s Centre for Design and Innovation (C4DI) ran a three month workshop programme entitled ‘Innovation by Design’ to help Scottish Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) strengthen their ability to find innovative solutions to common business problems.

The series aimed to help business professionals of all levels develop creative solutions to problems with products and services by applying a designer’s way of thinking.

(From left): Chris Rigby, Business Development Manager, C4DI Project

Director Professor Julian Malins and Principal Designer Graham Grant.

NATIONAL AWARD FOR INDUSTRY-ACADEMIA PARTNERSHIP

A cutting-edge collaboration between Aberdeen based Gas2 Ltd and the School of Engineering won the top accolade at the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Scotland Awards in February 2010.

The Awards recognise and honour the best projects involved in the KTP scheme, which aims to help businesses improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills that reside within the UK knowledge base. The award-winning partnership received financial support from KTP, which in turn is funded by the Technology Strategy Board along with the other government funding organisations.

Gas2 develops novel solutions for the gas to liquid fuel market, and has been working with Professor Edward Gobina from the School of Engineering, to optimise the operation of a miniature pilot unit which produces an output of high quality hydrogen and carbon monoxide (Syngas) from natural gas. This can then be reacted to produce a number of products including liquid fuels.

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FLAGSHIP UNIVERSITY EVENT BRINGS TOGETHER BUSINESS LEADERS

Business leaders from across the North-east came together for the prestigious 2009 Entrepreneurship Dinner, sponsored by AMEC, in October 2009 at The Marcliffe Hotel and Spa. Entitled ‘Riding the Storm’, the flagship University event which is now in its 14th year, included keynote speeches from Bernard Looney, North Sea Managing Director at BP, and Leo Koot, Managing Director of TAQA Bratani Ltd. The dinner culminated with a panel discussion including Neil Bruce, Executive Director for AMEC, and chaired by Jeremy Cresswell, Editor of the Press & Journal’s Energy supplement. The panel discussed lessons learnt from the latest economic downturn and touched on some very real issues facing the North-east and the wider oil and gas industry.

REPORT QUANTIFIES UNIVERSITY’S £300 MILLION CONTRIBUTION TO SCOTTISH ECONOMY

The University’s total contribution to the economy of the North-east is £227.5 million every year, while its total national contribution is calculated at £302.2 million.

In addition to core impacts such as staff employed, student spending and capital projects, the report emphasised the impact of the University’s relationships with business and industry. Its strong links with both local business and the public sector enable a high proportion of students to undertake work placements as part of their course and 18% of the total economic contribution is directly related to student placements.

This, combined with the University’s provision of corporate training programmes to industry, not only enhances graduate employability, but also improves workforce skills and provides opportunities for knowledge transfer.

The University also impacts positively on the health of the community both nationally and internationally, as it trains healthcare professionals, undertakes healthcare research and provides sports and exercise facilities for staff, students and the community. It houses the Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology, and is recognised internationally for its research into obesity.

FREE BUSINESS TRAINING IS BIG BOOST FOR SMES

A University initiative, which received more than £400,000 backing from the European Social Fund last year, is proving to be a success in providing free business training for small, medium and social enterprises (SME’s) across Aberdeen City and Shire.

The team running the ‘Business Skills for Growth’ project from Aberdeen Business School set a target of recruiting 175 individuals to the programme in November 2008 and have more than exceeded this number. Supported by a steering group, including representatives of the University, Enterprise Trust North East, Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, and Learndirect, the central objective of the project is to provide short courses to improve SME business skills in specific areas.

Beth Duff is founder of ‘the red horse speaks’ programme where horses help to teach personal development to clients of all ages and abilities. She is currently working towards a PhD on the impact of horses on human learning as a result of all the positive feedback she has received from participants. She met with David Gibbons-Wood, Director of the University’s Centre for Interna-tional Labour Market Studies, Project Manager for ‘Business Skills for Growth’ and Senior Lecturer within Aberdeen Business School.

BiGGAR Economics

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staff success

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UNIVERSITY DIRECTOR APPOINTED CHAIR OF MORAY TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

Andrew Martin, Director of the University’s Scottish Centre of Tourism (SCoT), has been appointed Chair of Moray Tourism Development.

With support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Moray Council, the group’s directors reflect a range of interests in the tourism sector. As Chair of Moray Tourism Development, Andrew will develop partnerships to build upon the region’s global reputation as the home of malt whisky, its heritage and its natural environment.

£12,000 INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FOR GRAY’S ALUMNUS AND LECTURER

Heather Ross, a lecturer at Gray’s School of Art, has been awarded the Royal Scottish Academy’s (RSA) Alastair Salvesen Scholarship of £12,000 and a solo exhibition at the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh.

Open to painters across Scotland, and sponsored by the Alastair Salvesen Trust in association with the RSA, the Scholarship is a major initiative intended to encourage young painters who have made the transition from college to a working environment to prosper. The Scholarship allowed Heather to venture to Japan for three months.

Heather with colleagues

PROFESSOR APPOINTED TO CBI JUDGING PANEL

Justin Greenwood, Professor of European Public Policy at Aberdeen Business School, was a member of the Final Awards judging panel for the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Trade Association Forum UK Best Practice Awards 2010.

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UNIVERSITY ACADEMIC PUBLISHES BOOK EXAMINING BRITAIN’S BLOGGING PHENOMENON

Dr Sarah Pedersen, a Reader from the Communication, Marketing and Media department at Aberdeen Business School, has published a book that takes a fresh look at the UK blogging phenomenon.

Why Blog - Motivations for Blogging includes original research on British blogging practices and motivations from one of the most well-respected practitioners in the field.

Weblogging or ‘blogging’ has joined e-mail and internet home pages as one of the most popular uses of the Internet. Dr Pedersen’s book focuses on a number of themes relating to contemporary uses of this global social media platform, including comparing British bloggers to their more researched US counterparts.

ABERDEEN’S SHERLOCK HOLMES COLLECTS HONORARY DEGREE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF HULL

Professor Dave Barclay, senior lecturer at the School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, received the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science from the University of Hull.

Professor Barclay was Head of Physical Evidence for the National Crime Faculty, leading forensic reviews of 235 murders, including high-profile cases in the UK and abroad. In 2005 the International Homicide Investigators Association named him ‘Investigator of the Year’, an unprecedented honour a non-police officer. His style of investigation led to a major shift away from the production of hard evidence for use in court and towards a much wider investigative input, providing intelligence across the whole enquiry.

Professor Barclay is now a senior lecturer at the University, as well as giving presentations to forensics students and lay audiences across the UK, and is a regular adviser and interviewee on crime and science television programmes.

Professor Barclay has worked on some of Britain’s highest profile murder cases. He is also a former head of physical evidence for the UK National Crime and Operations Faculty, where he was involved in reviewing more than 200 murder investigations, cold case reviews and inquiries into alleged miscarriages of justice, including the Bloody Sunday inquiry, the Omagh bombing, the World’s End murders in Edinburgh, and the Millie Dowler and Soham murders. His extensive experience also led him into becoming an adviser for the BBC television series ‘Waking the Dead’.

SCOTT SUTHERLAND PROFESSOR’S PRACTICE COMMISSIONED FOR NEW NUCLEAR ARCHIVE

Neil Gillespie, Director and Principal Architect at Reiach and Hall architects and a Visiting Professor at the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and the Built Environment, has had his practice awarded a prestigious commission by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority for the development of the national nuclear archive, a new £15 million facility in Wick.

Reiach and Hall propose completion of the project by summer 2013.

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GEOLOGIST JO ENGINEERS ROCK FAME

Energy Centre Online Distance Learning (ODL) Lead Lecturer and e-Learning Enhancement Co-ordinator for Postgraduate Studies Jo McCafferty is simultaneously pursuing her University and music careers.

Jo has supported Marillion, toured with Midge Ure and performed to a growing band of loyal followers in Aberdeen and across Scotland. Meanwhile she has also found the time to write, record and release six original acoustic albums.

DUNOON DEVELOPMENT IS FIRST IN SCOTLAND

Professor Gokay Deveci, from the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment, has applied his world-renowned expertise in sustainable housing to design the first certified Passivhaus in Scotland.

Professor Deveci has designed ‘Tigh-Na-Cladach’ or ‘house by the shore’ - an affordable housing scheme for Fyne Initiatives, the commercial subsidiary of Argyll based housing association, Fyne Homes, comprising 14 semi-detached houses overlooking the beautiful Firth of Clyde in Dunoon.

The scheme is the first in Scotland to be officially accredited by the Passivhaus Institut in Germany. This voluntary construction standard is only awarded to buildings meeting rigorous energy efficiency criteria.

For the last seven years, Jo has combined her music career with working at the University looking after the ODL students to varying degrees, teaching the Subsurface module and facilitating the Business Essentials module. Jo, who is based in the School of Engineering, has recently released her seventh, and first full band album, Overtaking on a Bend.

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Street Sport workers with members

of Grampian police.

working with the community

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ART MEETS SPORT TO GET KIDS ON BOARD

Street Sport, a community youth diversion initiative in Aberdeen, is now incorporating street art into its mobile pitches.

The initiative, co-ordinated by the University in collaboration with Grampian Police, takes sport to young people, within their own communities, promoting healthier lifestyles and alternatives to alcohol, drugs and antisocial behaviour. It gives young people the opportunity to channel their energies into sports in a structured and safe manner, and the versatile pitches can be set up on any sizeable area of tarmac or grass with the help of a dedicated team of volunteers.

Now with the addition of street art boards, which hang from the sides of the pitches, organisers hope to encourage those who go along to the sessions who aren’t interested in sport to engage creatively instead.

UNIVERSITY VOLUNTEERS GET THEIR HANDS DIRTY IN LOCAL GARDEN PROJECTS

Student volunteers from the University’s Charities Society RGU: RAG (Raising and Giving) Society have been getting their hands dirty to help two local community projects, the Milltown Community Project near Laurencekirk and the Community Orchard, managed by the Aberdeen Forward Project in Garthdee.

The students planted and staked trees and helped out with general garden tasks.

The RGU: RAG Society was recently awarded ‘Society of the Year’ at the University’s Student Achievement Awards, and has already raised over £5000 for various local and national charities in the past year.

PHYSIOTHERAPY CLASS FOR THE OVER-50’S

As part of Aberdeen’s 50+ Festival in October 2009, the School of Health Sciences held a physiotherapy exercise session. The event took place at RGU: SPORT and acted as a taster session for those interested in joining the regular class which is run as a service to the over-60s community by students studying physiotherapy.

MURDER, MYSTERY AND MICROSCOPES

Around 300 members of the public attended a sold out ‘Murder, Mystery and Microscopes’ event which took place at the University as part of TechFest in September 2009. Hosted by Damien McLeod of Original 106 FM, the event gave adults the chance to hear from some of the most high-profile and knowledgeable experts in the field. A collaborative initiative between the Macaulay Institute and Aberdeen’s two universities, the event formed a basis for the discussion of the forensic implications of a number of extracts from the fictional works of Scottish crime writer, Stuart MacBride.

RGU: Rag President, Stephanie Dowling

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STUDENT PROJECTS REVAMP VILLAGE CENTRE

Architecture students presented their final year project ideas to revamp Banchory’s town centre to it residents in a public presentation in July 2010.

The student project was chosen following an invitation from members of the Banchory and District Initiative (BDI) in 2009. Working in partnership with various agencies including Aberdeenshire Council and local groups including Banchory Community Council (BCC), the Initiative supports the development of a sustainable, diverse, inclusive and vibrant community in Banchory and surrounding districts.

Student proposals included the reinstatement of the Royal Deeside, Aberdeen to Ballater railway line and the creation of a cycle path, the re-development of Scott Skinner Square, a school of music, affordable housing, flats, studios and retail located between Bridge Street and the Golf Course.

SCHOOL TEAMS AIM FOR NEW IDEAS IN WASTE MANAGEMENT

Eleven school teams from Aberdeen City and Shire attended the Go4SET Launch Day in November 2009 to take part in Go4SET programme, hosted at the University. Each school fielded a team of six S2 pupils who were supported by their teacher and a company mentor throughout the project. The theme was ‘Waste and Your Environment’ and the teams were tasked to conduct a waste audit in the school and produce an account of the waste collection and treatment sites in their local district or town, in order to understand how the local waste sector operates. They also met their mentor companies, BP, AMEC, ConocoPhillips, WellOps and TOTAL to investigate how they handle the amount of waste they produce. Go4SET is a national programme aimed at stimulating the interest of young people in science, engineering and technology (SET) at a key stage in their education.

FASHION STUDENTS DESIGN FOR THEIR FUTURE

Fashion Design students from Gray’s School of Art hosted an exclusive black tie fashion show event entitled ‘Shooting stars never stop even when they reach the top’ at Aberdeen Art Gallery for members of the local community in March 2010.

From working with BP to local charities, international brands and key players in the Scottish textiles industry, such as Johnstons of Elgin, the students have benefited from a varied remit and showcased many of the live projects they have been working on.

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PUPILS BENEFIT FROM FREE SCIENCE WORKSHOPS

The School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences offered two exciting, free workshops to senior secondary school pupils across Scotland during the school holidays in October 2009. The specially-designed taster sessions provided pupils with an opportunity to decide whether studying at the School is for them.

‘The Medicine Journey, Pharmacy Focus,’ gave pupils an insight into the hands-on skills required to become a pharmacist. They experienced patient monitoring, and had the opportunity to practise the basic principles of medicines management, and the varied career paths open to pharmacists.

ABERDEEN ARCHITECTURE STUDENTS HELP REALISE DELHI DREAMS

A group of altruistic students from the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment head off to India in summer 2010 to design a school for a charity.

Architecture student David Fleck, first became involved with the Delhi charity, Anusaran, three years ago, when he spent six months teaching and helping in the schools and the small local church. The charity is run entirely by local couple, John and Abha, and David has remained in close contact with them since then. He was impressed with their long term vision for a centre that could bring together their work, and be a shelter for girls in the surrounding communities, but other more urgent things and a really tight budget always delayed its progress.

David was inspired to use his building design expertise to help them realise their dream, and persuaded a number of his third year classmates to join him and work on the project.

‘A Day in the Life of a Forensics Science Student’ included a lecture on ‘How to Investigate a Crime Scene’, as well as a practical exercise in which pupils were fully kitted out as crime scene investigators making their own findings in the University’s state-of-the-art mock crime scene facility.

During their three weeks in Delhi, the group thoroughly researched the local area and developed the brief and vision for the project with the charity. They also ran focus groups and workshops with women and children at the existing schools, to aid producing designs for the school. They also explored rural Delhi, collecting photos, film footage and drawings, and generally getting to know the community at the school as much as possible.

David and his fellow students have committed to the project for the long term, and hope that the funds will become available to complete it.

David has also forged a partnership with humanitarian architecture organisation, Article 25, in a bid to start up a student society at the University which will run arts events, design competitions, lectures and workshops centred around live projects in the developing world.

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VIP visitsVIP visits

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FIRST MINISTER ON PANEL AT ABERDEEN’S FIRST YOUTH SUMMIT

Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond addressed the next generation of private and public sector leaders at the Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Future’s (ACSEF) first economic summit for young people at the Aberdeen Business School in February 2010.

Entitled ‘Future Makers’ the event was designed to attract a range of University and College undergraduates, young professionals and senior secondary pupils between the ages of 16 – 24.

The summit combined presentations on ACSEF’s plans to grow the economy and enhance quality of life with interactive workshops to determine if those plans meet young people’s expectations for the future.

WORLD WIDE WASTE – TALK ON GREEN IT HIGHLIGHTS ENERGY ISSUESMary Vincent, one of the world’s leading experts on green IT innovation, visited the University in April 2010 to deliver two lectures. The first was tailored towards students, the other took place as part of the North-east’s IT Leaders’ Forum which was launched in February 2010.

Serial entrepreneur Mary Vincent, founder and CEO of Green Star Solution, a global business and technology firm, examined why innovation methodologies for IT are so important.

WORLD LAND SPEED RECORD-BREAKER JETTED TO UNIVERSITY

Richard Noble OBE, the man behind bringing the world land speed record back to Britain and achieving the first ever supersonic land speed record programme, inspired the next generation of engineers at a lecture in April 2010.

Mr Noble delivered the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) Scotland Prestige Lecture 2010. In the free event, the record-breaking challenger and entrepreneur discussed his latest project – Bloodhound SSC. The Bloodhound project is pushing the very boundaries of technology in a bid to develop the world’s first ever 1000 mph car. The event was sponsored by BP, Wood Group, CORE Oil & Gas, Simpson’s Hotel, in Aberdeen, and the University.

CLOTHES SHOW HOST STRIKES A POSE

Caryn Franklin, one of the UK’s most well-known fashion experts, visited the University in March 2010 to give a talk as part of the Guests @ Gray’s lecture series at Gray’s School of Art. Caryn, who presented The Clothes Show on BBC 1 for more than a decade, has produced many documentaries and books on the subject of fashion. She is also co-founder of the award winning campaign All Walks Beyond the Catwalk. As a hugely successful practitioner, Caryn focused the lecture on fashion and the body, questioning her industry’s attraction to the emaciated woman.

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DISTINGUISHED VISITORS COME TO ABERDEEN CENTRE FOR TRAUMA RESEARCH

The Aberdeen Centre for Trauma Research (ACTR) welcomed the visit of Major Wajid Malik and Captain Khalid Shah in August 2010. Each visitor distinguished himself during and after the catastrophic 2005 earthquake in the Pakistan controlled area of Kashmir. Their visit further cemented the academic link between the University and Pakistan and further advanced the University’s international standing.

During their visit, both Major Malik and Captain Shah received intensive research training from Dr Susan Klein, Reader in Trauma Research, and clinical experience from Professor David Alexander, Director of ATCR.

GUEST LECTURE BY BP’S GROUP HEAD OF ENGINEERING

Staff and students attended a guest lecture by John Baxter, Group Head of Engineering at BP and honorary graduate of the University in March 2010.

John’s lecture, entitled ‘In at the Deep End’, reviewed the engineering challenges facing the industry as oil exploration and production moves from fixed platforms on the continental shelf to floating structures in deep water. The latter presenting a wide range of unique challenges requiring intense professional expertise and innovation.

In addition, meetings were arranged for Captain Khalid with the Adult Psychiatric Service at the Royal Cornhill Hospital and the local ambulance service.

The visitors were also able to draft papers representing collaborative research efforts under the aegis of the Pakistan-Aberdeen Collaborative Trauma Team (PACTT). This was established by Dr Klein and Professor Alexander in conjunction with Professor/ Brigadier Rana, who is the Head of the Department of Psychiatry in Rawalpindi and is now one of the University’s Honorary Professors.

Professor David Alexander

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YOUTH LEARNING, EMPLOYMENT AND ENTERPRISE ANGEL LEADS BUSINESS LECTURE

Ken Milroy, chief executive of renowned social enterprise organisation Aberdeen Foyer, delivered the 2010 Absoft Entrepreneurship Lecture at the University in March 2010.

Ken is the founding leader of one of Scotland’s most successful youth learning and enterprise charities. He has been at the helm of the Foyer since 1996, overseeing its rise to become one of the most important charitable organisations of its kind in the country.

Ken spoke to over 300 students during the annual lecture.

CABINET SECRETARY VIEWS UNIVERSITY’S CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT

Mike Russell MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, saw at first hand the beginning of enabling works for the University’s £170 million development of its Garthdee campus when he visited in August 2010.

The development will be characterised by:• A clear, vibrant campus heart;• State-of-the art flexible learning spaces;• Increased accessibility;• Energy efficient and environmentally sustainable solutions;• Enhanced landscaped qualities and a stronger relationship between buildings and the riverside setting;• A confident presence for the University and the region and• A spectacular new pedestrian and cycle bridge over the River Dee.

CONVERSATIONS IN ARCHITECTURE

Architecture students benefited from the insight of up and coming international practitioners Pascal Flammer, who runs his own practice in Switzerland, and London-based James Payne, in March 2010.

During the annual event, entitled ‘Conversations’, the students delivered presentations on their work and had the opportunity to gain feedback on the projects they are working on whilst they are still in the formative stages.

Students Glenn Buchan and Ruth Chapman with Ken Milroy (centre)

Mike Russell with Acting Principal John Harper

Pascal Flammer

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honorary awards

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SIR RANULPH FIENNES - DOCTOR OF SCIENCE

Perhaps Sir Ranulph’s most famous trek was the Transglobal Expedition from 1979 to 1982, which comprised a journey around the world on its polar axis using surface transport only, covering 52,000 miles.

Other huge challenges included leading the first hovercraft expedition up the Nile and achieving the world record for unsupported northerly polar travel. In 1992, Sir Ranulph led the team that discovered the lost city of Ubar in Oman as well as completing the first unsupported crossing of the Antarctic continent with Mike Stroud. This was the longest unsupported polar journey in history.

In 2003, again with Mike Stroud, Sir Ranulph ran seven marathons in only seven days on all seven continents. In 2005, he climbed Everest (Tibet-side) while in March 2007 he climbed the North Face of the Eiger followed by Everest (Nepal-side) in 2008.

In May 2009, aged 65 years, he conquered Everest and became the oldest Briton to summit Everest. Through these expeditions he raised significant funds for the British Heart Foundation and Marie Curie Cancer Care and to date he has raised nearly £14 million for these and other UK charities, including the Multiple Sclerosis Society and Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

STEWART SPENCE - DOCTOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Stewart is one of the leading hoteliers and businessmen in Aberdeen. He entered the hospitality industry at the age of fifteen as a trainee chef in Aberdeen. A period of training from 1962 - 1968 then followed with British Transport Hotels in Aberdeen, an exchange in Paris and then the Great Western Hotel in London.

Stewart became assistant manager at the Treetops Hotel in 1968, then general manager in 1970 at the brand new Commodore Hotel in Stonehaven.

Along with his father-in-law, Dick Donald, he purchased his first hotel, the Atholl, in 1972. Over the years, he has been the owner and proprietor of a number of the North-East’s leading hotels including the Queens Hotel, the Marcliffe in Queens Terrace, the Belvidere (now Simpsons), the New Marcliffe, Invery House in Banchory and The Marcliffe at Pitfodels.

MARK MCALLISTER - DOCTOR OF TECHNOLOGY

Mark is Chief Executive of Fairfield Energy. He had previously been a member of the senior management team at LASMO plc and was Managing Director of Europe and North Africa, at the time of the acquisition of LASMO by Eni in 2001. Previously, Mark had been on the executive team at Monument Exploration where he was Director of Operations.

Led by Mark, Fairfield was created to pursue opportunities provided by the restructuring of asset ownership in the UKCS, as the majors and other long-term acreage holders began to shift their focus to different parts of the world. Fairfield is an innovative upstream oil producer focused on the appraisal and development of hydrocarbon accumulations in the North Sea.

BARBARA DICKSON - DOCTOR OF MUSIC

Barbara is a singer, musician and actress. She is a multi-million selling recording artist and the biggest selling female Scottish album artiste of all time. An Olivier Award winning actress and an O.B.E conferred in 2002 for her services to music and drama, combine to firmly establish Barbara Dickson as one of Britain’s most talented and versatile of artists.

Barbara started singing in the pubs and folk clubs of Scotland and the North of England working with artists such as Gerry Rafferty, Billy Connolly and Archie Fisher which led to her singing role in the 1974 musical ‘John, Paul, George, RIngo ...and Bert’, which opened in the West End. She had her first top ten hit in 1976 and a plethora of musical and theatrical successes followed.

Since the 1990s she has concentrated on the acoustic and folk roots in her music.

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DONALD EMSLIE - DOCTOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Donald was a main Board Director of SMG for seven years and Director of Broadcasting at STV before becoming Chief Executive of the Television Division and latterly the Chief Executive of SMG plc.

He left the Group in March 2007, leaving behind a legacy of merging and rebranding Scottish and Grampian Television, installing state-of-the-art new studios in Aberdeen and Glasgow and launching the beginnings of their digital strategy, as well as helping ITV through its first broadcast review. During his time at SMG Donald was also the Chair of ITV Network Ltd and GMTV Ltd.

Since leaving SMG Donald has developed his career as a Non-Executive Director and sits on the Board of Scottish Water as well as the Scottish Rugby Board.

DR DAME CLAIRE BERTSCHINGER - DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

After training as a nurse, Claire became a nurse/medic for the Scientific Exploration Society Expedition to Panama, Papua New Guinea and Sulawesi.

In 1983 Claire joined the disaster relief group of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). It was Claire’s work during the famine in Ethiopia in 1984 that brought to the world’s attention the horror of famine, starvation and suffering.

Claire has since worked in over a dozen war-torn countries including Afghanistan, Kenya, Lebanon, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Liberia.

Claire is currently the Director of the Diploma in Tropical Nursing at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and is also an Ambassador for the African Children’s Educational Trust and a voluntary worker in the UK for Age Concern.

KAREN MATHESON - DOCTOR OF MUSIC

Karen is widely recognised as the haunting vocals of Celtic super-group Capercaillie. She was given an OBE in the 2006 New Years Honours list, an astonishing achievement to add to her award of “Best Gaelic singer” from the inaugural Scottish folk awards.

Capercaillie have sold more than a million albums across the world, performed in over thirty countries and written and starred in the blockbuster movie ‘Rob Roy’, with Liam Neeson and Jessica Lange, in which Karen performed a solo rendition of a Gaelic lament.

Karen has released three solo albums, The Dreaming Sea, Time to Fall and Downriver, providing the perfect platform for the vocal delights that have stunned audiences around the world and introduced the beautiful Gaelic language to countless thousands of people.

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ALASDAIR LOCKE - DOCTOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Entrepreneur Alasdair began his career in corporate banking at Citybank. After time in Singapore he became Chief Executive at Kelt Energy. In 1992 Alasdair left to set up in business himself, buying a majority shareholding in KCA through Abbot Holdings Ltd. In 1995, an opportunity presented itself to do a reverse takeover of a quoted cash shell, Unigroup Plc, which on completion was renamed Abbot Group plc.

In 2001 Abbot Group acquired Deutag AG, becoming KCA Deutag. It was acquired by First Reserve and taken back into private ownership in 2008.

Alasdair was recognised as the Scotland Overall and Master Entrepreneur of the Year in 1999 and received the International Business Achievement Award from the Scottish Business Achievement Award Trust in 2009.

PROFESSOR SIR ANDREW MOTION - DOCTOR OF LETTERS

In 1980, Andrew become editor of the Poetry Review and, in 1982, produced the Penguin Book of Contemporary British Poetry in collaboration with Blake Morrison. He also produced critical works on two poets who have influenced him particularly, Edward Thomas and Philip Larkin. Between 1982 and 1989 he was Editorial Director and Poetry Editor at Chatto and Windus. During this time, he published three collections of his own verse, Secret Narratives, Dangerous Play and Natural Causes. He also won the Somerset Maugham Award for his biography, The Lamberts: George, Constant and Kit.

In 1996, Andrew took a post at the University of East Anglia and, since 2003, has been Professor of Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London. In 1999, following the death of Ted Hughes, Andrew was appointed Poet Laureate, a post held by the likes of Dryden, Wordsworth, Tennyson and Betjeman.

   

GABRIELLE WALKER - DOCTOR OF SCIENCE

Gabrielle has made a significant contribution to heightening awareness and influencing key leaders on the challenges that climate change poses.

Gabrielle studied a BA in Natural Sciences, and a PhD in Heterogeneous Catalysis at Cambridge. On completion of her PhD, Gabrielle started working as a freelance journalist, subsequently taking prestigious positions such as Climate Change Editor at Nature and Features Editor at New Scientist, for whom she now acts as consultant.

More recently Gabrielle has presented flagship BBC radio programmes, such as “Oceans: What lies beneath”. Gabrielle is also a consultant to the UK Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser and to the Government Office of Science. In June 2010 she took up the position Chief Scientist of Xynteo, a consultancy specialising in advising companies about low-carbon growth.

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university appointments

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UNIVERSITY WELCOMES NEW DIRECTORY OF LIBRARY SERVICES

Michelle Anderson has joined the University as Directory of Library Services. Previously, Michelle worked at the University of Lincoln, initially as Customer Services Manager, and then as Head of Library and Learning Resources for eight years.

Michelle is a professionally qualified librarian, gaining an MA from Leeds Metropolitan University and a Postgraduate Diploma from the University of York, before working in both HE and FE libraries, and as an information professional in commercial research and development.

UNIVERSITY APPOINTS NEW HEAD OF NURSING AND MIDWIFERY

Professor Brian Webster has joined the University as Head of the School of Nursing and Midwifery.

Brian joins the University from his previous role as Deputy Head of School and Director of Education within the School of Health Sciences at the University of Southampton. There, he was responsible for nearly 250 members of staff and looked after all the School’s educational contracts, worth around £27 million.

NEW UNIVERSITY BOARD MEMBERS

The University has made four new appointments to its Board of Governors, the body responsible for overseeing the strategic direction of the University and taking the necessary steps to ensure its continued success.

Peter Nicholson, Group Head of Human Resources for John Wood Group PLC, will join international postgraduate student Victor Meme, Course Leader Susan Lawrie and James Dunphy, a member of staff within the University’s Academic Affairs department, on the Board.

HONORARY RESEARCH FELLOW APPOINTED WITHIN THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH AND WELFARE RESEARCH

Dr Mark Cheesman, Director of Outlook Medical Ltd, has been appointed as an Honorary Research Fellow within the Institute for Health & Welfare Research.

Dr Cheesman is Senior Medical Advisor to TAQA Butani and in this capacity is responsible for leading on development and delivery of a strategy to meet the offshore medicine and health needs of the business.

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BUSINESS LEADER TO BECOME ABERDEEN BUSINESS SCHOOL PROFESSOR

Neil Bruce, one of the north-east’s most influential businessmen, is tutoring corporate leaders of the future as Honorary Professor at Aberdeen Business School.

Mr Bruce is Chief Operating Officer, Natural Resources and Power & Process at AMEC, the international engineering and project management company, which has revenues of more than £2.6billion and employs almost 22,000 people in around 40 countries worldwide.

BOB THACKWRAY APPOINTED AS HONORARY PROFESSOR

Bob Thackwray, the Leadership Foundation’s Director of Membership and Networks, has recently been appointed Honorary Professor at the University.

Bob is also a Visiting Professor at the University of Hertfordshire, and has responsibility for developing collaborations with professional associations, groups and networks for the Leadership Foundation.

PROFESSOR KEN MACKINNON APPOINTED HEAD OF LAW AT ABS

Professor Ken Mackinnon has joined the University as Head of Law at Aberdeen Business School, leaving his previous role as Head of Law at the University of Waikato in New Zealand.

Ken previously taught at the University of Aberdeen and as a member of the Social Security Appeal Tribunal in Aberdeen in the 1980s, he formed an enduring interest in access to justice and in alternatives to the court system. In 1990, Ken moved to New Zealand as a foundation staff member for Waikato’s new Law School. He was involved in an effort to bring more Maori people into the legal profession by developing a new curriculum, ensuring personal support for students, and most recently by increasing distance learning options. When he left, more than one quarter of the student population studying law were Maori.

Professor Ken Mackinnon

He has more than 25 years experience of the oil and gas industry and has been with AMEC since 1997, becoming COO of the organisation’s Natural Resources business in 2006 and COO of its Power & Process business in December 2009. He is also an Executive Director of AMEC plc.

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NEW UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT ELECTED

Ryan Maclean who is studying for a Postgraduate Masters degree in International IT Law at Aberdeen Business School, has been elected as the Student President of the University’s Student Association, RGU: Union.

Ryan, who took up his post at the beginning of August 2010, was elected by his peers who voted online and across the University campus during RGU: Union’s election week in March 2010.

AWARD-WINNING ARTS LUMINARY APPOINTED HEAD OF GRAY’S SCHOOL OF ART

Professor Paul Harris, a British Academy and Scottish BAFTA award-winning photographer and film-maker, was appointed as the new Head of Gray’s School of Art in June 2010.

New University President Elected Ryan Maclean

Ryan’s campaign aims to ensure students receive more effective feedback from University coursework and assessments; establish an International Students Forum to better engage the University’s growing international student population and also to campaign for extended library and IT facility access.

Professor Harris joins Gray’s from the University of Abertay, where he was Creative Director of the Institute of Arts, Media and Computer Games from 2002. During his tenure, he attracted over £9 million in funding to support Scotland’s creative industries and also established the National Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education.

Following an illustrious career in television, working for Channel 4, Central Television and the BBC, Paul began teaching media production and was Head of Film and Television at Edinburgh College of Art from 1996 to 2002.

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Staff and student statistics

UNIVERSITY STAFF STATISTICSData as at 1st October 2010

STAFF HEADCOUNT AND FTE

Academic Professional Research All

Headcount 567 873 41 1481

Percentage % 38.28% 58.95% 2.77% 100%

FTE 473.22 689.55 32.86 1195.63

Academic Professional Research All

Asian 1.4% 0.5% 0.5% 2.4%

Black 1.4% 1.1% 0.1% 2.6%

Chinese 0.6% 0.5% 0.1% 1.2%

Not Known 0.5% 0.2% 0.0% 0.7%

Other/Mixed 0.7% 0.3% 0.0% 1.0%

White 33.8% 56.2% 2.1% 92.1%

Academic Professional Research All

Female 19.2% 37.3% 2.0% 58.5%

Male 19.0% 21.7% 0.8% 41.5%

GENDER PROFILE

ETHNIC PROFILE

Academic Professional Research All

20 and Under 0.0% 2.0% 0.0% 2.0%

21 - 25 0.3% 6.0% 0.1% 6.4%

26 - 30 1.9% 6.5% 0.7% 9.1%

31 - 35 3.7% 7.6% 0.5% 11.8%

36 - 40 4.8% 6.1% 0.4% 11.3%

41 - 45 6.4% 7.1% 0.6% 14.1%

46 - 50 7.2% 6.8% 0.4% 14.4%

51 - 55 6.7% 7.2% 0.1% 14.0%

56 - 60 4.5% 6.0% 0.0% 10.5%

61 - 65 2.0% 3.3% 0.0% 5.3%

over 65 0.7% 0.4% 0.0% 1.1%

AGE PROFILE

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ACADEMIC YEAR 2009/10 GENDER

OUG UG PGT PGR Overall TotalNo.sFT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT

No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s

Aberdeen BusinessSchool

Male 0 142 818 126 719 1269 28 32 1565 1569 3134

Female 0 128 1378 186 473 852 22 24 1873 1190 3063

Faculty of Designand Technology

Male 1 77 1385 224 691 417 37 24 2114 742 2856

Female 0 231 866 45 154 63 15 9 1035 348 1383

Faculty of Healthand Social Care

Male 0 116 509 144 100 195 21 8 630 463 1093

Female 1 893 2483 674 163 625 23 16 2670 2208 4878

Total 2 1587 7439 1399 2300 3421 146 113 9887 6520 16407

ACADEMIC YEAR 2009/10 GEOGRAPHIC ORIGIN

OUG UG PGT PGR Overall Total

FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT

No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s

Aberdeen Business School

UK 0 259 1775 285 183 1122 12 25 1970 1691 3661

EU 0 4 274 8 53 187 3 9 330 208 538

Overseas 0 7 147 19 956 812 35 22 1138 860 1998

Faculty of Designand Technology

UK 0 302 1917 249 90 237 19 13 2026 801 2827

EU 1 3 198 9 16 34 6 6 221 52 273

Overseas 0 3 136 11 739 209 27 14 902 237 1139

Faculty of Healthand Social Care

UK 0 993 2498 789 136 659 23 21 2657 2462 5119

EU 1 12 468 19 41 75 8 2 518 108 626

Overseas 0 4 26 10 86 86 13 1 125 101 226

Total 2 1587 7439 1399 2300 3421 146 113 9887 6520 16407

ACADEMIC YEAR 2009/10 STUDENT PROFILE

OUG UG PGT PGR Overall Total

FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT

No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s No.s

Aberdeen Business School 0 270 2196 312 1192 2121 50 56 3438 2759 6197

Faculty of Design and Technology 1 308 2251 269 845 480 52 33 3149 1090 4239

Faculty of Health and Social Care 1 1009 2992 818 263 820 44 24 3300 2671 5971

Total 2 1587 7439 1399 2300 3421 146 113 9887 6520 16407

Course Level

Mode of Study

Age on Entry No.s %

UG

FT Under 21 1844 66%

21 or over 952 34%

Total 2796 100%

PT Under 21 43 3%

21 or over 1367 97%

Total 1410 100%

ACADEMIC YEAR 2009/10 AGE - NEW UG ENTRANTS

UNIVERSITY STudent STATISTICSData as at 1st October 2010

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Financial Summary 2009-10

Total Income increased by £2.61m or 2.8% to £94.41m.

Funding Council grants received were substantially flat over the prior year. Within this total, teaching grants fell by 3.3% to £36.1m while research grants increased by 52.5% to £3.3m.

The decrease in teaching grants is driven by:

• the reduced numbers of students on the nursing and midwifery courses;

• the continuing move to a higher tuition fee element of the gross funded unit of resource per student;

• the absence of funding for increased Student Teachers Superannuation Scheme contributions which has now been fully embedded into the main teaching grant. This overall reduction is partially offset by an underlying inflationary increase in the teaching unit of resource of 2.0% for the year.

The increase in research grants is driven fundamentally by the University’s outstanding performance at RAE 2008. All three of the University’s Research Institutes benefited from this significantly increased core funding and it is expected that this will generate further growth in the University’s research activities over the coming years.

Tuition fees increased by £0.93m or 2.9% to £33.64m.

Home/EU fees increased by £2.0m, or 13.3%, to £17.04m. This partly reflects a continuation in the move to a higher fee element in the gross Funding Council teaching unit of resource but is also caused by an increase in Home/EU students of approximately 5% over 2008/9.

Increasing competition and the world-wide economic recession hit international student markets badly with the result that international student numbers were 9% down on 2008/9 on a full time equivalent basis. Allowing for the offsetting effect of international fee increases, overall income in this category of University activity was down by £1.1m or 6% over 2008/9.The University continues to focus on international markets and is currently pursuing collaborations with its international partners, Hobsons and Navitas, in an attempt to ensure it can enjoy future growth in international student participation.

Income from research grants and contracts has decreased by £0.16m or 3.9% to £3.95m. This is an encouraging result nevertheless as, on the back of last year’s 30% increase, it provides the University with evidence that research activities have stabilised at the higher post RAE 2008 levels.

Other income increased by £1.31m or 11.3% to £12.91m. Growth here was driven by high occupation levels and increased volumes in the University’s residential accommodation business.

Endowment and investment income has increased by £0.42m to £2.82m. Although interest incomes were down as the historically low interest rate regime took its full year toll, this was more than offset by improved market returns on University investments and endowments as stock market performance picked up considerably over 2008/9.

Total expenditure decreased by £0.45m to £90.62m.

Staff costs increased during the year by £1.16m or 2.2% to £52.92m due to the combined effects of basic pay awards, incremental progression, social security costs and pension contributions. Offsetting this rise is a reduction in total full-time equivalent staffing levels in the current year. Underlying pay costs rose by around 3.5% for the year.

Other operating expenses, excluding depreciation and interest, decreased by £2.36m or 7.5%. The prior year operating expense total is inflated by non-recurring costs of around £2m in relation to enhanced retirement provision. Adjusting for these non-recurring costs leaves an underlying increase in other operating costs of approximately 1.5%.

The net group result for the year was a surplus of £4.53m.

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GROUP INCOME £’000

Funding Council Grants 41,008

Academic Fees & Support Grants 33,637

Research Grants & Contracts 3,951

Other Operating Income 12,988

Endowment Income and Interest Receivable 2,823

94,407

Group Surplus before tax 4,529

GROUP EXPENDITURE £’000

Staff Costs 52,916

Other Operating Expenses 29,967

Depreciation 6,431

Interest payable 564

89,878

43%43%

36%

4%

14%

3%

33%

7%

1%

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executive roles & responsibilities

PolicyAdvisor

Vice Principal& Pro

Vice-Chancellor(Research &

Commercialisation)

CREDO

Secretary tothe Board

Senior VicePrincipal &

DeputyVice-Chancellor

(AcademicDevelopment

& Quality)

Dean for theEnhancement of

Learning,Teaching & Assessment

Department forthe Enhancement

of Learning,Teaching &Assessment

Academic Affairs

LibraryServices

UniversitySolicitor

Vice Principal& Pro

Vice-Chancellor(Student

Experience)& ExternalRelations)

Dean ofStudents

StudentServices

Development Office

StudentAdministration

Dean ofFaculty ofDesign &

Technology

School of Computing

School ofEngineering

Gray’sSchoolof Art

The ScottSutherlandSchool of

Architecture& Built

Environment

Dean ofFaculty ofHealth &

Social Care

School of AppliedSocial Studies

School ofHealth

Sciences

School ofNursing &Midwifery

School ofPharmacy

& Life Sciences

ExecutiveDirector

(InformationTechnology &

Communication)

IT Services

Univation

RecordsManagement

ExecutiveDirector(Human

Resources)

HumanResources

OrganisationDevelopment& Leadership

Occupational & Environmental

Health &Safety

The GatehouseDesign &

PrintConsultancy

Vice Principal& Pro

Vice Chancellor(Planning & Resources)

Dean ofAberdeenBusinessSchool

Department ofAccounting,Finance &Economics

Department ofCommunication,

Marketing & Media

Department ofInformation

Management

Department ofLaw

Department of Management

Vice Principal& Pro

Vice-Chancellor(Planning & Resources)

Finance &Procurement

Estates &Property Services

RGU: SPORT

Planning

Principal & Vice-Chancellor

Marketing, Communications

and Student

Recruitment

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DONORS TO ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY

Throughout the year Robert Gordon University has received support from many generous donors including:

Lindsay Stewart

Friends of Gray’s Fund

BP Exploration and Operating Company Ltd

SMD

Tritech

Triton Group

Subsea UK

Acergy UK Ltd

ConocoPhillips UK

AGR Group

AMEC

FMC Technologies

Bureau Veritas

KCA Deutag Drilling Ltd

Petrofac

Pöyry

Sparrows Offshore

Talisman Energy UK Plc

Technip UK

TOTAL

Wood Group

OPITO/Offshore Training Foundation

Nylacast

donors

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THE PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY www.rgu.ac.uk

Robert Gordon UniversitySchoolh i l lAberdeenAB10 1FRScot land UK

Telephone: +44 (0) 1224 262000