Career stories
Who are our members? How did they find us? What brought them to a career in HE?
AHEP’s biggest resource is our members; which is why we want to share your experiences, philosophies and journeys with our entire network.
If you have a story to tell or would like to discuss this section further, please contact us hello@ahep.ac.uk.
Shaping Lives Through Student Support
Published on Jun 9, 2025 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Updates , Career stories
What I love most about my role is connecting with students from all walks of life and seeing their journey unfold. Watching them grow, face challenges, and succeed is incredibly rewarding. It’s those everyday interactions that remind me why this work matters.
Celebrating Member Success – Laila Burton
Published on May 28, 2025 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Blog , AHEP Updates , Career stories
As part of the AHEP’s Student Experience and Engagement Special Interest Group (SIG), we’re conducting our 'Celebrating Member Success' interviews. In this edition we hear from Laila Burton, Assistant Director, Office of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Students) at The Open University. We discuss what we mean by success and hear Laila’s thoughts on how this has evolved during her career.
Celebrating Member Success – Anna Quinn
Published on Sep 11, 2024 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Blog , AHEP Updates , Career stories
As part of the AHEP’s Student Experience and Engagement Special Interest Group (SIG), we’re conducting our 'Celebrating Member Success' interviews. In this edition we hear from Anna Quinn, Head of Student Services at University of Northampton and The Consent Collective.
Celebrating Member Success – Emily Maddock Khan
Published on Jun 26, 2024 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Updates , Career stories
AHEP’s Student Experience and Engagement Special Interest Group (SIG), interview series, 'Celebrating Member Success' helps to shine a light on those who are working in these roles, so that others can learn more about the many different ways that we’re approaching this area of work across the sector. In this edition of 'Celebrating Member Success', we hear from Emily Maddock Khan, Head of College Services at the University of Nottingham International College.
AUA Mentoring: My experience
Published on Jan 10, 2023 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Updates , Career stories
AUA Mentoring: My experience Mentee – Phil Rowsby, Senior Governance Office, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh Mentor – Rachel Gerry, Director of Planning, Open University Since becoming an AUA member, although I have benefited greatly from a variety of member benefits, including fantastic networking opportunities, the Mentoring Programme has proven to be the most valuable to my […]
From the world of Student Experience and Engagement: Tania Struetzel – University of Greenwich
Published on Oct 20, 2021 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Blog , Career stories , From the world of Student Experience and Engagement
From the world of Student Experience and Engagement: Tania Struetzel – University of Greenwich As part of the AUA’s Student Experience and Engagement network, we’re conducting interviews with those who work in the field. A wide variety of roles and teams support the improvement of student experience and engagement within universities. Our interview series helps […]
From the world of Student Experience and Engagement: Jonathan Dempsey – New College of the Humanities (NCH)
Published on Sep 21, 2021 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Blog , Career stories , From the world of Student Experience and Engagement
As part of the AUA’s Student Experience and Engagement network, we’re conducting interviews with those who work in the field. A wide variety of roles and teams support the improvement of student experience and engagement within universities. Our interview series helps to shine a light on those who are working in these roles, so that […]
From the world of Student Experience and Engagement: Lizy Holder – Bath Spa University
Published on Aug 5, 2021 / No Comments
Category: AHEP Blog , Career stories , From the world of Student Experience and Engagement
As part of the AUA’s Student Experience and Engagement network, we’re conducting interviews with those who work in the field. A wide variety of roles and teams support the improvement of student experience and engagement within universities. Our interview series helps to shine a light on those who are working in these roles, so that […]
Meet Rachel Sandby-Thomas | AUA Career Stories
Published on Dec 2, 2020 / No Comments
Category: Career stories
Meet Rachel Sandby-Thomas | AUA Career Stories How long have you worked in HE and what was your first position? I’ve worked in HE for 4 years and came straight in as Registrar. I came in feeling very complacent as I had previously been a Director General in the Department for Business for 8 years […]
Keynote Speakers Career stories
Published on Nov 8, 2019 by Dr Louise Ellis & Helena Tinker / No Comments
Category: AHEP Updates , Career stories
At this year’s AUA Autumn Conference we’re thrilled to have two unique and insightful Keynotes, both based around the theme of Sustainability. To get to know our speakers better, we asked them a few revealing questions. Dr Louise EllisDirector of Sustainability University of Leeds Louise is Director of Sustainability at the University of Leeds and […]