HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year
Applications for 2024/2025 are now closed.
The Higher Education Bioscience Teacher of the Year Award seeks to identify the UK’s leading bioscience higher education (HE) teachers, recognising the invaluable role they play in educating and inspiring the next generation of biologists. The competition is open to all employed bioscience teachers in the UK HE system and individuals can be nominated either by self, peer, management, or student nomination.
We are seeking nominations which represent and celebrate the whole of the HE bioscience teaching community across all career stages.
The HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year Award recognises outstanding learning and teaching practice in the biosciences. The scheme rewards lecturers who:
- Display individual excellence through the development and implementation of approaches to teaching that have proven successful in promoting bioscience student learning and achievement.
- Undertake scholarly and professional developmental activities that actively influence and enhance the learning of their students.
- Support colleagues and influence bioscience student learning beyond their own department and institution.
- Exhibit innovation in relation to teaching that has proven to improve their teaching practices and enhance student learning.
- Embeds inclusive approaches to bioscience teaching, ensuring equality of participation and outcomes for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year Award has been developed from the UK Centre for Bioscience’s Ed Wood Teaching Awards, which were established in 2008/09 to provide an annual opportunity for bioscience academics to receive national recognition for their outstanding learning and teaching practices.
Since the closure of the UK Centre for Bioscience in 2011, the award has been offered and managed by the Royal Society of Biology. The Society and the sponsors, Oxford University Press and Heads of University Biosciences, are delighted to support the continuation of this award.
The winner will receive the Ed Wood Memorial Prize of £1,000 to spend as they wish. The Ed Wood Memorial Prize is named in honour of Professor Edward J. Wood, who established and became the first Director of the Learning and Teaching Support Network for Bioscience, subsequently the UK Centre for Bioscience, and who dedicated himself to the promotion of biochemistry and molecular biology education.
The winner will also receive £250 worth of OUP books of their choice; and one year’s free membership of the Royal Society of Biology at the appropriate grade (MRSB or FRSB). The winner also gets the fee for their first year of Chartered Science Teacher (CSciTeach) waived, should they wish to apply.
The remaining finalists will each receive a £150 prize for their case study, and will also receive one year’s free membership to the Royal Society of Biology, and the fee for their first year of Chartered Science Teacher (CSciTeach) waived.
Previous winners and finalists are listed below, along with their successful case studies. In some cases application forms and video entries can also be viewed as well as career timelines that have been extracted from Recognising Teachers in the Life Sciences, a fantastic publication by The Physiological Society. This was developed in collaboration with the Academy of Medical Sciences, Royal Society of Biology and HUBS.
2023 Winner and Finalists
Overall Winner: Dr Emmanuel Adukwu, University of the West of England | Case Study
Finalists: Dr Ellie Davison, University of Lincoln and Dr Kelly Edmunds, University of East Anglia | Case Study
2022 Winner and Finalists
Overall Winner: Professor Jo Rushworth, University of Lincoln | Case Study
Finalists: Dr Emma Yhnell, Cardiff University | Case Study | and Dr Stephany Veuger, Northumbria University | Case Study
2021 Winner and Finalists
Overall Winner: Dr Nigel Francis, Swansea University | Case Study | Application Form
Finalists: Dr Dave Lewis, University of Leeds | Case Study | and Dr Helen Vosper, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen | Case Study | Application Form
2020 Winner and Finalists
Overall Winner: Dr Sue Jones, York St. John University | Case Study | Application Form
Finalists: Dr Peter Klappa, University of Kent | Case Study | Application Form | and Dr Alfred Thumser, University of Surrey | Case Study | Application Form
“Applying for the award was a great opportunity to draw together what I was passionate about and what I’d discovered about how students learn. The process helps you reflect about what is meaningful from your teaching approach and gives you a chance to explain this to fellow bioscience educators. I’ve gained insight into how I can keep innovating in my teaching and evaluating its effectiveness. The application process is straightforward though I would start planning early. I’m thrilled to have won and I would definitely recommend applying.”
Dr Carys Watts, Newcastle University
HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year 2024
"Teaching can often be the Cinderella activity in biosciences, and you don’t feel particularly outstanding when you are working with amazing colleagues. Being shortlisted gave recognition for me personally and also for my teaching colleagues as it recognised the excellence in what we do. It was also great to meet the other finalists — very inspiring scientists with varied approaches."
Dr David Martin, University of Dundee, HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year finalist 2019
"Ignore the imposter syndrome and get an application in. The worst thing that can happen is you have to apply again the following year. The application itself is a really helpful opportunity to evaluate where you are at and plan your next career steps."
Dr Dom Henri, University of Hull, HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year winner 2018
"Go for it! I hadn’t considered applying for the award until a colleague encouraged me. It was a great experience as it came at a time when I proposing a re-launch of the teaching programme I had been directing. It provided a perfect opportunity to reflect on what I had achieved thus far and the direction I wanted the programme to take in the future."
Dr Sarah Gretton, University of Leicester, HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year finalist 2017
"As a bioscience educator, if your sessions drive your students to grow intellectually, to deep dive into an exciting biological world or make a difference in their career journey, then you should consider applying for the Bioscience Teacher of the Year Award! It's not just about getting the recognition you deserve but you also become part of an amazing community of bioscience educators."
Professor Momna Hejmadi, Univesity of Bath, HE Bioscience Teacher of the Year finalist 2012
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