Recently, National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Academy Members came together at Oxford Brookes University for an engaging afternoon of talks highlighting clinical academic career pathways and current research efforts across the Oxford Health Biomedical Research Centre (OH BRC) community.
The event opened with a speech focused on NIHR Academy opportunities from OH BRC Academic Training Programme Director Associate Professor Kate Saunders, followed by Andreia Costa, Project Manager for Training and Academic Career Development.
Presentations included insights from the NIHR Clinical Lecturer Dr Graham Blackman, on building a clinical academic career through the NIHR Academy. Dr Megan Kirk Chang, OH BRC Preventing Multiple Morbidities subtheme lead presented on a study exploring sleep and cognition. Dr Zoe Ryan, OH BRC Mental Health in Development Theme researcher, presented on developing research infrastructure through the WISDOM Research Network.
Further presentations were delivered, showcasing the breadth of research across the OH BRC. Fahad Al-Huda, DPhil student at the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, presented on loneliness in Early Psychosis. Dr Tara Ghafari, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity presented on structural asymmetry and brain dynamics.
The afternoon concluded with Dr Susan Black from the University of Oxford Careers Service, who spoke about building resilience as a researcher and shared insights from the recent NIHR Postdoctoral Event “Thriving in Transition”. Overall, the event provided a valuable opportunity for members to learn more about each other’s work and strengthen connections across the network.
Andrea Costa said: “Bringing NIHR Academy Members together in this way is invaluable. Creating space for people to connect, share their experiences, and learn from one another strengthens not only individual career journeys but our wider research community.
“It was inspiring to see so much enthusiasm and curiosity in the room, and I’m delighted we could support an event that helps nurture the next generation of clinical academics.”
To learn more about training at OH BRC, email: training.ohbrc@psych.ox.ac.uk
