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Communitay
September 2022
Keeping Abertay’s community of Alumni, Supporters and Friends in the know
Keeping Abertay’s community of Alumni, Supporters and Friends in the know
The National Cyber Resilience Advisory Board (NCRAB) brings together leaders and influencers across the private, public and third sectors to provide strategic advice to support Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Government to help ensure Scotland is a digitally secure and resilient nation.
Dr Coull says: I am delighted to have been appointed to the National Cyber Resilience Advisory Board. The NCRAB has already made great progress to ensure Scotland can bounce-back for any cyber attacks it faces and can be prosperous in the digital sphere."
Dr Natalie Coull joins the National Cyber Resilience Advisory Board
Academics at Abertay University have teamed up with Carnoustie Golf Links to create a new centre focused on golf research.
The Carnoustie Golf Links Research Hub, based at the historic course, builds on previous collaborative research work between the two institutions and will focus on increasing participation in underrepresented groups, developing new methods to enhance golf performance and assessing the impact of major events.
Abertay partners with Carnoustie Golf Links on new innovative golf research centre
Abertay University’s School of Applied Sciences has appointed international biology and chemistry expert Professor Christopher Gwenin as part of a continuing strategic priority to provide research with real-world impact.
Professor Gwenin joins from Xi’an Jiaotong – Liverpool University (XJTLU) and brings a strong track record of working on high value and impactful projects that link academia and industry.
Abertay University appoints new Professor as strategic research enhancement continues
An evidence assessment led by Abertay University that found loot boxes used by the video games industry have correlations with problem gambling has also uncovered a need for better research into the full range of impacts the sector has on its customers.
Commissioned by the UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the evidence assessment team was tasked with considering harms in the industry and the impact of the loot box market.
Undergraduate and postgraduate students from Abertay University have been named as 'Graduates of the Year' in a new list from games industry trade body, TIGA.
A total of 16 of the 77 UK accolades bestowed by TIGA's Education Committee went to Abertay students, with judges rigorously reviewing submissions made, including an analysis of student work.
Abertay students named in games industry 'outstanding graduates' list
Abertay researchers have found evidence to suggest that watching pornography may not be as detrimental to how men view romantic partners as widely believed.
Contradicting widespread claims that pornography usage can impact men’s ability to form or sustain relationships, the team from Abertay’s Division of Psychology and Forensic Sciences found that much greater nuance is required when considering the real effect on relationships, and also the extent to which heterosexual men find other women attractive.
Abertay study reveals porn may not have ‘universally negative’ effect on how men view other women
The National Student Survey 2022 (NSS), which gives final year students the opportunity to rate their learning experience, found that 81% per cent of those surveyed are satisfied with the quality of their course.
The results place Abertay 24th out of 123 UK universities for overall student satisfaction, a jump of 13 compared with last year. In Scotland, Abertay is ranked 6th out of 19 institutions.
Professor Liz Bacon, Principal of Abertay University, said:
Our performance in this year’s NSS is a cause for celebration. For an institution of our size to be ranked in the top 25 UK universities for student satisfaction is a great achievement and I’d like to thank staff for their commitment to providing students with the best possible experience. I’m delighted that so many of our students have enjoyed their time at Abertay and I look forward to next week’s graduation ceremony where we will celebrate their achievements.
Abertay University receives top marks from students in nationwide survey
A competition that seeks to identify and foster the next generation of cybersecurity leaders will be hosted at Abertay’s new hub for cyber research and innovation later this year.
The Cyber 9/12 Challenge, run by the Atlantic Council in partnership with the Scottish Government, Dewar Consulting and the University, will be held at the Abertay cyberQuarter on 18-19 October 2022.
Abertay cyberQuarter to host the world’s only multidisciplinary cyber competition
Universities in developing nations must urgently reform their teaching and learning models to take better advantage of the opportunities brought about by digital technology, a new academic book from Abertay University has concluded.
Deputy Principal & Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alastair Irons co-authored The Emerald Handbook of Higher Education in a Post-Covid World which focuses on higher education providers in developing countries in Africa and the Global South.
Academic handbook calls for higher education pedagogy reform in developing nations
Nine games industry professionals have been announced as judges for the Dare Academy 2022 final, which is to be held at the EGX Games Event in London from the 22nd-25th of September.
Many of the judges are Abertay University alumni, who have taken part in Dare and have gone on to excel within industry.
Dr Mhairi Thurston, a senior lecturer on Abertay’s MSc Counselling programme, worked with sight loss charity Retina UK on the free online tool following a survey that showed 92% of those with inherited sight loss suffer negative psychological impacts.
Dr Thurston said:
In the past, sight loss was tackled purely from a functional perspective... Thankfully healthcare professionals are starting to take a more holistic approach to treating sight loss and there is now a lot of support out there aimed at promoting positive mental health in the sight loss community.
Abertay academic creates new mental health resource for those affected by sight loss
Abertay University has been ranked in the UK top 20 for Teaching Quality by this year’s Times & Sunday Times Good University Guide.
The University was placed 17th out of 130 institutions across the country in the key area of Teaching Quality and also made improvements in almost every other metric used by the respected ranking.
The accolade follows similar recent success for Abertay in the guide, with the University previously achieving the title of UK University of the Year for Teaching Quality 2021.
It’s pleasing to once again see our commitment to teaching quality recognised at such a high level in this national ranking - Professor Liz Bacon
Abertay ranked in top 20 UK universities for teaching quality
Abertay University and other small institutions are well-positioned to stimulate the growth of key priority economies, according to a new report from Guild HE.
The Building the Jigsaw Report by Guild HE - who represent 58 universities and colleges in the UK - shows that small universities are innovative, agile industry experts supporting economic development within their communities and specific sectors in the economy such as the creative industries, health and agriculture.
The new Abertay cyberQuarter, an £18m cybersecurity research, development and innovation centre housed within the University, is featured in the report and is credited with attracting cyber businesses to Dundee. The new centre provides regional SMEs with the space and resources to grow whilst allowing larger companies to establish a presence in the city, supporting economic development.
Abertay University's economic impact highlighted in new report by Guild HE
Abertay twins with Ukrainian university to offer support to students and academics
Abertay University has announced a new partnership with a university in Ukraine that aims to support students, academics and higher education leaders who have been affected by the ongoing war in the country.
Abertay reveals sponsors backing Dare Academy Game Design Competition
Abertay University’s Dare Academy competition will be supporting six potential new video games start-ups this summer thanks to a partnership agreement with four companies with strong links to the industry. The sponsors are Lindsays, Henderson Logie, Dell and Unity.
Abertay graduate overcomes serious illness to start dream career in nursing
Andrina Begg suffered from a near-fatal brain aneurism on the final year of her course.
Abertay partners with Westford University College Sharjah
Through the partnership, a range of BA and MBA courses will be offered to students in the region through blended learning from our School of Business, Law and Social Sciences.
Abertay launches online master's degrees designed for global audience of professionals
The university's new online courses aim to create a global workforce for the future, with the launch of seven entirely online master's programmes.
Abertay University hosts Royal Society of Edinburgh Young Academy Scotland conference
Ninety delegates visited the campus on Monday 29 and Tuesday 30 of August for the group’s AGM followed by a Research Day.
Campus investment supports drives towards Net Zero
Abertay University's main campus buildings have undergone a major renovation to improve thermal efficiency as part of an investment in sustainability, health and wellbeing and the drive towards Net Zero.
International conference explores digital accessibility and widening access issues
An international conference exploring digital accessibility, widening access to higher education and approaches for improving student engagement attracted international delegates to the university.
Santander Universities and Abertay University team up to offer 10 students a £1k grant
Abertay University is celebrating its partnership with Santander Universities by giving 10 students the chance to win £1,000 to spend on the Santander Aspire Webstore.
Yellow Crow Games announced as winner of Dare Academy 2022
Yellow Crow Games scooped the Dare trophy and £5,000 in prize money as their game, For Hexposure, was selected by a panel of industry judges following a process of pitching, concept creation, design and polishing.
Abertay's library is a very distinctive and purpose-built building, which became a Bell Street fixture in the late 90s
Who can remember where the library was before? And what previously occupied the site?
Let's take a trip down memory lane and find out!
Abertay University Careers Service is offering a new service to its graduates called 'Graduate Success’ to support graduates to move forward after graduation. In addition to appointments for graduates and access to career-related resources, the careers service will be running sessions focusing on what Abertay graduates need.
For instance: help with writing a graduate CV; graduate job hunting; exploring the options available after graduation, and lots more. For more information, please contact graduatesuccess@abertay.ac.uk
Bell Street Ventures (BSV) is your first port of call if you are interested in the world of self-employment and business startups. The facility is there to help guide you on your journey to starting out and trading with support, networks, and resources to make this as easy as possible. You can find more information about the services on offer through the BSV web page
We have a number of Enterprise Grants (up to £500) and Enterprise Bursaries (up to £2000) that are awarded throughout the academic year.
If you want to speak to someone about any of these, email our Enterprise Officer at simon.fraser@abertay.ac.uk
We hope you all had a wonderful day celebrating your graduation and are looking forward to an exciting future ahead.
We've featured some of our new alumni on the website - go and have a look.
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