2023-24 Winners

• Delivering Excellence – Laura Farling, Faculty Office Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences 

• Making an Impact – Emma Healey, School of Biological Sciences 

• Celebrating Innovation – Reimagining the Post Graduate Applicant System, Digital and Information Services Directorate and the Directorate of Academic Services 

• Outstanding Leadership – Helen McNeely, Student and Campus Experience 

• Exceptional Contribution – Jacinta McAtamney, Student and Campus Experience 

• Student Choice – Michaeline Donnelly, Student and Campus Experience 

• Best Collaboration – DfE Skill Up Project Team, Student and Campus Experience, School of Arts, English and Languages, Queen's Business School, Finance, Faculty Office EPS, Directorate of Academic Services, School of Electronics, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EEECS)

A huge congratulations to all the winners and nominees! Your hard work and commitment make a real difference to the University community.

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Reach '25

Through a vibrant collaboration between Queen's Sustainability team, the Naughton Gallery, Queen's Film Theatre, the Seamus Heaney Centre, the MediaLab and a range of academic experts across Queen's and within the region, the 2025 festival organisers have created a unique programme – part of our 180th anniversary celebrations – that explores some of the key climate issues of our time through image, film, music, VR, talks, panels, creative writing and painting, engineering and design, and academic debate.

Our goal is to shine a spotlight on the interface of arts and sustainability as we inspire positivity and collaboration.

This exhibition charts the development of Queen’s over the past 180 years. Included amongst the items is the original Charter from 1845 establishing Queen’s College Belfast, historic photographs of Queen’s people and Queen’s buildings, and copies of various student publications.

• adding academic and employer contacts to the Always On Reputation Database;
• engaging with academic and employer contacts, particularly when the QS and THE reputation surveys are open from November to March;
• utilising conference toolkits and branded PowerPoint templates, which include rankings and statistics with accompanying icons that can be incorporated into presentations. More rankings and statistics are compiled in the Queen’s selling points document, which is updated regularly;
• enhancing research visibility and academic impact of research by working with Research and Enterprise to inform strategic approaches to publication planning and accessing the latest intelligence on research performance;
• leveraging social media and online platforms to amplify the reach and impact of research;
• informing the University when presenting at conferences to enhance institutional visibility and reputation.

Learn more about how you can help support the University in achieving its top 200 global ranking.

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The University has already made remarkable progress in its efforts to achieve and sustain a top 200 global ranking position, with over 20 subjects recently ranked in the world’s top 200 in the QS World University Rankings by subject for 2025. The University was also ranked 117 in the world for Research Quality in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025.

For additional queries in relation to rankings, please email Dr Kathryn Boyd, Strategic Marketing Manager, Global Marketing and Reputation: k.boyd@qub.ac.uk. 

*This offer is available to all University employees on permanent or fixed-term contracts, paid monthly through the University payroll and subject to income tax and National Insurance (NIC), with the exception of Q-Work staff.

How to access the offer

To take advantage of the dental care discount, simply log in to your My Lifestyle account via qub.rewardgateway.co.uk. Once logged in, you'll find the discounted dental care under a separate tab at the top of the page, titled ‘Dental Insurance’.

1. Click on the enrollment page;

2. Enter the following details:

• Find out more and enrol online here. Queen's staff and students qualify for the concession rate where applicable.

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These short part time day and evening courses at Queen's offer everyone over the age of 18 the chance to try something new and enjoy learning in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere. Staff are invited to share this programme with family and friends. Read more about Open Learning's Spring 2025 programme here.

• Invoices received by 5.00pm on Wednesday 9 April 2025 and Requests for Payment or Staff Expenses Claims received by 12.00pm on Thursday 10 April 2025 will be paid by Thursday 17 April 2025;
• Invoices received after 5.00pm on Wednesday 9 April 2025 and Requests for Payment or Staff Expenses Claims received after 12.00pm on Thursday 10 April 2025, but received before 5.00pm on Tuesday 15 April 2025 will be paid by Friday 2 May;
• All Invoices, RFPs and Staff expenses received after 5.00pm on Tuesday 15 April 2025 will be paid by Friday 9 May;
• Normal payment arrangements apply for invoices, RFPs and Staff expenses received week commencing 28 April.

Whilst Accounts Payable will make every effort to comply with this timetable, due to the volume of payment requests received at this time of the year and to ensure payment before the holiday, staff are requested to process all such transactions well in advance of these deadlines.

Further clarification of these arrangements, if required, may be obtained from Accounts Payable by emailing: accounts.payable@qub.ac.uk.

You could encourage participation by highlighting benefits such as:

• Boosts cardiovascular health
• Strengthens muscles and joints
• Burns extra calories
• Improves stamina and endurance

Consider setting up a friendly challenge, like tracking steps for a week and rewarding the top participants!

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Sustainability Leaders from across the University will join us for a panel discussion, facilitated by Professor Michael Alcorn, Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor Sustainability and Strategic Projects. Topics will include education, research, operations, engagement, and outreach.

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The goal of the focus group is to review and discuss the survey findings with a small number of colleagues and to deep dive on specific themes that have been identified through the initial survey analysis.

As a participant, you will have the opportunity to share your views in a safe and supportive environment. Your feedback will inform our work on the Advance HE Race Equality Charter and accompanying university Action Plan.

The Student Surveys Team would like to see a response rate of 80% (current rate: 60%) to this survey from students. All eligible students will have received their emails, texts and phonecalls from Ipsos asking them to complete the survey.

Further information and marketing materials are available on the SharePoint site and response rate reports are shared weekly with relevant staff.

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Students can find more information about the surveys and student feedback on the My Queen's website

Student feedback given in the NSS is used by Queen's to enhance the quality of courses and improve the wider student experience.

The continued support of all staff is fundamental to the success of the surveys, so we welcome your help.

For any queries, please email the Student Surveys Team at surveys@qub.ac.uk.

• The winner takes it all? Reflection on the election success of the Far-Right in Germany, by Dr Ulrike Vieten
• Raising the Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility. Guest contribution from Victim Support NI.

To contribute an article to Queen's Policy Engagement, please email Kevin at qpol@qub.ac.uk.

• J.D. Vance has become Trump's attack dog, but he's yet to prove himself a worthy successor, by Dr Richard Hargy

• Lord Alderdice appointed Honorary Professor of Practice at the Mitchell Institute
• Engage with Nature and Horrible Histories this Spring with Queen’s short courses
• Over 20 subjects at Queen’s University Belfast rank in the world’s top 200 for 2025
• In Pictures: IN GOOD COMPANY: Portraits of Queen’s Women
• Queen’s honours 15 women from across the University through an inspiring art exhibition
• Celebrating the Women of Queen’s: Past, Present and Future
• Queen's and Stranmillis renew century-long partnership to enhance education in Northern Ireland
• In Pictures: LGBTQueen's: A Celebration Showcase
• ARK celebrates 25 years of providing accessible social policy research to improve communities

Queen's Staff Forum was established in June 2018. Made up of representatives from each School, Directorate and GRI across Queen's, this group represents all of our people and provides an opportunity for staff to share their views on all aspects of working at Queen's, help shape the employee experience, and make a real difference for all who work here.

• Conference: Parity of Esteem as a Constitutional Principle in Northern Ireland and Beyond, Wednesday 9 and Thursday 10 April, 9.00am to 5.00pm, Canada Room and Council Chamber
• Lecture: Policing Empires: Militarization, Race, and the Imperial Boomerang in Britain and the US, Monday 14 April, 5.00pm to 6.30pm, Senate Room, Lanyon Building
• LINAS Conference 2025: AI Crossroads: Bridging Disciplines for Innovation, Monday 14 April, 9.00am to 5.00pm, Canada Room and Council Chamber, Lanyon Building
• Research Workshop: Sexual Consent and Legal Reform: Towards a Communicative Responsibility Approach, Wednesday 30 April, 1.00pm to 2.30pm, Fellows' Room, Mitchell Institute, 18-19 University Square

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Whether you’re an international student, staff member, or simply curious about the Irish language, this session is designed to give you the opportunity to get to grips with the unique sounds of Irish names (like Caoimhe, Tadhg, or Saoirse) and how to confidently pronounce them, deepening your appreciation of Ireland’s rich linguistic heritage.

• Workshop 1 - Practice-as-Research PhD Supervision Methodology, Wednesday 2 April
• Workshop 2 - Research Impact in Practice-as-Research, Tuesday 8 April

These workshops offer a valuable opportunity for participants to contribute to key discussions and help shape future recommendations and actions to support Practice-as-Research.

Research Culture NI is a Wellcome-funded project led by Queen’s University Belfast in partnership with Ulster University.

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The Research Culture Community will identify areas for collaboration, find gaps in provision and make plans to address them, as well as contribute to some specific projects and report on progress. Find out more here.

Who can apply?

Applications are welcome from Queen’s individuals of all grades, career stages and role-types (eg research students, postdocs/research staff, technicians and other methodology/research specialists, academic staff, professional services staff involved directly in research and innovation, and professional services staff involved in broader institutional culture initiatives that notably apply to research), as long as they can demonstrate a key interest, expertise and contributions to aspects of research culture.

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During your research all researchers, irrespective of discipline, will generate research data or resources. This can be tables and charts of results, sensor data, audio or video recordings, diaries, interview transcripts, survey results, text, photos, focus group, digital content etc, the list is endless.

Note that almost every researcher will have important data, but researchers may not recognise it as data. Sometimes it may be called primary sources, resources or others may feel the data is so qualitative that they think they don’t have any “data”. This course aims to help you:

• identify which types of data/resources you will have
• identify what your funder policy is regarding sharing this content
• discover how to share/publish this content at the end. If this content is sensitive, you will be advised how to keep it safe.
• find out how to safely and effectively manage this content throughout the lifecycle of the research (storage, sharing and archiving, for example)
• understand the ethical (research integrity, informed consent), legal (GDPR/data protection, Intellectual Property) and funding requirements/contexts to your research data/sharing
• find out how to get a DOI for this content before you publish any related articles

• Subscribe here.

This newsletter includes the latest R&E information on:

• Research Quality
• Impact and Engagement
• Funding
• Enterprise and Innovation
• Knowledge Transfer Partnership
• Awards and honours
• Training and Development
• Research to Reality

• Visions of Europe: The Empty Grave
• Visions of Europe: Souleymane's Story
• Visions of Europe: The Count of Monte Cristo
• Visions of Europe: Misericordia
• LUMI X Visions of Europe: Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
• The Stimming Pool
• Vermiglio
• Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
• Oscars 2025: Conclave
• Walled Cities: White Elephant + discussion
• Reach '25
• Four Mothers
• Muriel's Wedding
• NT Live: Dr. Strangelove
• The End
• The Most Precious of Cargoes

Staff tickets are priced at £7.50. Staff and students aged 26 and under can join LUMI to get tickets for £5.00 every day, all year round.

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• Poetry in translation workshop with IMRAM Féile Litríochta Gaeilge: This translation workshop will be led by Keith Payne and Áine Uí Fhoghlú, focusing on the work of Palestinian poet Marwan Makhoul, followed by roundtable discussion with the poet and his English translator Raphael Cohen.
• Works in Progress: An Improv Jam: This jam, focused on creativity, confidence and cooperation, is open to anyone interested in making things up.

• Postdoc Life Series: Computing and Digital Support for Researchers at Queen’s, Wednesday 9 April, 12.00pm to 1.00pm, online
• Postdoctoral Leadership Programme, Tuesdays 20 May and 3 June, 9.30am to 4.30pm, in person (venue to be confirmed). Applications close at midnight on Friday 11 April.
• Applying for Fellowships: Networking with Succesful Fellows (networking event): Thursday 15 May, 11.15am to 2.00pm, in person (venue tbc). Includes lunch.

Please feel free to contact the University Safety Service at safety@qub.ac.uk should you have any queries or training requirements.

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Coaching is widely recognised as a development tool that helps staff enhance their personal and professional growth. Through structured conversations, it enables individuals to explore options and gain valuable insights into work-based challenges and opportunities.

The Coaching Service at Queen's is provided by a team of trained internal coaches, including a cohort currently completing their ILM Level 5 qualification. As part of their training, these coaches work with individuals on a one-to-one basis to offer support on challenges such as managing change and transitions, career development, and interpersonal relationships.

• SharePoint Admin Essential Training
• Intermediate SQL for Data Scientists
• API Development with TypeSpec

From Learning for all, LinkedIn Learning, Nature Masterclasses and Recruitment and Selection Training, the Learning and Development programme of events includes courses to suit everyone.

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This Community of Practice brings together staff from across the university – academic, administrative, and professional services to explore how we can integrate sustainable development into education, research, and community engagement.

Whether you joined in February or are new to the group, this is an opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to sustainability efforts at Queen’s.

For more information, please contact Natalie Le Seelleur or Dr Alison Calvert.

• Read the Jisc Report: How to Approach Digital Transformation in Higher Education. Jisc’s newly published report highlights the key success factors for digital transformation, drawing on insights from universities, including Queen’s. The findings demonstrate how institutions can integrate digital technologies, such as AI, to enhance teaching, learning, and strategic planning. Queen's involvement in the project is highlighted in a video case study, which showcases the institutional co-creation of a new AI Strategy for Queen’s, supported by Jisc’s digital transformation toolkit.
• The AI Hub's AI Building Blocks training series has now concluded. Recordings of sessions can be found here, where the fundamentals of AI and its applications across higher education are explored.

Colleagues, friends or family who would like to take part can access the survey here.

For any questions about the research, please contact Dr Ngan Tran at GIFTproject@qub.ac.uk. 

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The online survey can be accessed through the QR code or survey link. No login or software installation is required. It should take around 15 minutes. Upon completion of the study, participants can choose to enter the study’s prize draw with the chance to win from £20 to £200 in form of gift cards as a token of thanks for their participation.

This study is funded by Wellcome Trust. It received ethics approval from the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences Research Ethics Committee (Ref: MHLS 24_112).

• People with Down Syndrome, aged 6-50 years.
• People aged 50-80 years, with Mild Cognitive Impairment or early Alzheimer's Disease.

If you, or your friends or family, would like to take part or hear more about the research, please contact Dr Aoife Hunter: a.hunter@ulster.ac.uk / 028 7012 3416.

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Individuals will be invited to come to the Northern Ireland Clinical Research Facility (Belfast City Hospital) for some vision tests and photographs of the eye, along with some straightforward memory and behavioural tests. With their consent, tear, saliva, and blood samples may also be collected. Travel expenses will be reimbursed, and support will be provided for the study visit.

This study is funded by Alzheimer's Society.