evolve magazine - spring 2013

7/27/2019 Evolve Magazine - Spring 2013

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evo veThe magazine for Friends of Coventry University

S u m m e r

2 0 1 3

Bronze

Product Design graduateFergus Feeney is coining

Olympic success

ReunitedCoventry graduatescelebrate on campusand around the world

How our alumnisgenerosity creates globalopportunities or students

w i na C o v e n t r y

U n i v e r s i t y

H o od i e !

ChangingLives

SilverGold


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This magazine is published twice a year or alumni o Coventry University. All letters, photos and news are welcomed but we reserve the right toedit any contributions. The opinions expressed in evolve are those o thecontributors and do not necessarily re ect those o the Alumni RelationsO fce or Coventry University.

The alumni teamHead o Fundraising and Alumni Services Michael Mogan

Alumni Relations Manager Kristina Anders Annual Fund O fcer Brian WilsonDevelopment Manager Chris Smith

Contact usTelephone: +44 (0) 24 7688 8589

Email: [email protected]

Post: FOCUS, The Development O fce, Alan Berry Building, Room120, Coventry University, Priory Street, Coventry, CV1 5FB

Website: www.coventry.ac.uk/alumni

E-News: Subscribe to a ree monthly alumni e-newsletter byemailing SUBSCRIBE to [email protected]

Social Networking: Become a Fan and join the Friends oCoventry University group onFacebook , link up with the Universityand other pro essionals on theLinkedin website

Credits: This magazine iswritten and edited by Kristina Anders andKatie Southwell,designed by Martin Sully or Coventry University,

photography by Graham Harwood and printed by Emmersons Press.Special thanks to everyone who contributed to this issueo evolve . Please keep sending in your stories.

2 www.coventry.ac.uk/alumni

welcomeevolve contents

This summer has seen some o the hottestdays in years and amidst the summer un,we have received the news that the Vice-Chancellor o Coventry University, Pro essor

Madeleine Atkins CBE, has been appointedChie Executive o the Higher EducationFunding Council or England (HEFCE).

Pro essor Atkins has made anoutstanding contribution to theUniversity, the city and the regionand I am sure you will join me incongratulating her on her new roleand wish her all the best or the

uture.

In this issue, we have Fergus Feeney, the man behindthe design and production o last years Olympic medals,

Jess Goldings race to represent Australia in SkeletonRacing at the Winter Olympics 2018 and brother duoRinat and Rahul Malik, who launched the new E&C alumnigroup this April.

I would also like to draw your attention to our evolvearound the world photo competition we want to seewhere you receive or take your copy o evolve, the alumnimagazine! You can fnd all the details on page 38.

This issue is o course also packed with your updates,letters, reunions and events so sit back or a goodcatch-up with your University.

Keep in touchKristina

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Vice-ChancellorMadeleine

Atkins o ers a

warm welcomeFor some oyou this will beyour frst lookat our alumnimagazine; orme, it will be myfnal chance towelcome you as

Vice-Chancellor. A ter nine enjoyable

years I have decided its time tomove on. I have been o ered, andaccepted, the role o Chie Executiveo the Higher Education FundingCouncil or England (HEFCE).

It has not been an easy decisionto make. Over the past ew yearsthe University has achieved manysuccesses and developed strategiesand plans to take us into a moredemanding environment. The uturelooks bright or Coventry Universityand Im certain the institution willcontinue to ourish.

I will continue in my role as Vice-Chancellor until early next calendaryear and Im delighted that I willbe able to preside over one moreweek o graduation ceremonies inNovember. Ill also look orward toreceiving my copy o Evolve and

keeping up to date with the latestalumni news.

Pro essor Madeleine Atkins CBE Vice-Chancellor

evolve contents

10 Get Connected

Find out what old riends are doingnow

22 Letters Your views and opinions aboutCoventry University

30 Lecturer in FocusBob Bird shines a spotlight on ethicalhacking

34 EventsSports Day, reunions and more

regulars features

competitions andoffers

8 Olympic dreams or speedy

graduateJess Golding ulfls her need or speedthrough skeleton racing

14 Putting drivers back in controlWorking with Nissan to put highper ormance driving at peoplesfngertips

16 Changing livesFollow a group o students whoembarked on the adventure o ali etime in Jordan

18 Forging links through ootballSharing University expertise indeveloping countries

20 Winning designHow one graduate is coining Olympicsuccess

24 A amily a air Two brothers building alumni bridges

26 Passport to successHigh- ying career or graduate in Spain

32 Be part o something big The latest way to und education

38 Benefts and ServicesSome o the perks o being a membero FOCUS

This magazine isavailable in alternative

ormats on request. Call+44 (0)24 7688 8589 or [email protected]

contents14

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up date The latest campus and graduate news

Got astory?

Send newsto alumni@coventry.

ac.uk

A utomotive and Transport Designgraduate Christopher Kvilums hasbeen selected as the winner othe Lanchester Trust Student Prize or hisdesign o an energy e fcient 35m luxurycatamaran.

Chris, rom Birmingham, waspresented with a cash prize o 250 anda certifcate in honour o the achievementduring his graduation ceremony inNovember 2012.

The brie or the annual prize is setby the Lanchester Trustees, Chris Clark,Malcolm Whitehouse and Eric Baptiste,as a way o ormally recognising theenterprise, initiative, creativity and inventiondemonstrated by Coventry Universitystudents.

Chris ound out about the LanchesterStudent Prize in his fnal year. He said:The Lanchester history has inspired manygenerations o designers and is particularlyrelevant to the city o Coventry. I was keento be a part o this prestigious prize.

Chris was eager to use his design tochange perceptions that green design isexpensive and unreliable. He designed a

35m catamaran whichharvests natural solarand wind energy toprovide ventilation andcooling.

The design takes

on board a holisticdesign approach thatmanages to combatissues within themarine industry and ina global context.

He continued:When I heard I hadwon the prize I eltamazing! I neverthought that I wouldget it. It seemed a bit

unreal. However it is an honourto receive it, and I am very appreciative.Chris is currently studying or a PhD

and will use the prize money to buybooks. He plans to create a design toolthat other yacht designers can use toimplement technologies to calculate howmuch energy and money they are saving.Chris said: I would like to say thank you

www.coventry.ac.uk/alumni

evolve update

Inspiring a generation o energy e fcient designers

John Devanes work selected or National Portrait Gallery

very much to all o those at the Lanchester Trust or this prestigious Student Prize,which I am honoured and very grate ulto receive. I hope that many others likemysel will be inspired by the works o Dr.Frederick, George and Frank Lanchester,to produce innovative solutions to todaysmodern problems.

John Devane, head o the Universitys Department o Design and Visual Arts, has been shortlisted or the 2013 BP Portrait Award.His oil painting The Uncertain Time which depicts his threechildren Lucy, Laura and Louis will be exhibited in the NationalGallery until mid-September.

It will be the second time Johns work has eatured in theNational Portrait Gallery; his painting entitled In the House o

The Cellist was selected or an exhibition in 1995.Painted over three years, The Uncertain Time sets out to

show how children emerge rom childhood and begin to assert

their independence, revealing something o their adult selves. The BP Portrait Award, described as the most prestigiousportrait painting competition in the world, is in its 34th year atthe National Portrait Gallery and has a cash prize o 30,000 orthe winner.

John Devane said: I am greatly appreciative o theopportunity to show work or a second time in the NationalPortrait Gallery, and to have been shortlisted or this award.

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evolve update

Motorsport Engineering graduate andcompetitive racer Rob Moon is workingtowards breaking the record or theworlds quickest electric motorcyclewith Phil Edwards, head o Sussexbased high-powered, low carbonvehicle specialists Weald TechnologyLtd (Weald EVT).

Rob, who graduated with rstclass honours, currently works as aconsulting engineer in speed workdevelopment and he has joined orces

with Phil and the team at Weald EVTto launch the EV1000 challenge. A crowd unding campaign is now opento raise money or the initial stage othe project.

The crowd unding target is 7,000which will go towards the constructiono the bike. Donations, large and smallcan be pledged online at www.igg.me/ at/ev1000 which also includes urtherin ormation and a video about theproject. Funds raised will help the team

Engineering bright sparkslaunch electric drag raceworld record attempt

build the rolling chassis, buy the rearwheel and drive package, and mouldthe body panels.

Their goal is to build an electricmotorcycle with 1,000 horsepower oclean energy that can accelerate to60mph in under one second, 200mphin just our seconds, and then on to225mph in just a quarter o a mile.

Lead Chassis Designer Rob Moonwon the Baroness Platt o Writtle Award

or outstanding engineering student

as an undergraduate at CoventryUniversity and he has a success ultrack record in motorcycle racing.

Bernard Porter, Director o LowCarbon Vehicle Programmes atCoventry University said: Projectssuch as this demonstrate the way inwhich new vehicle technologies can beharnessed to deliver any combinationo power, per ormance and e ciency,and we are delighted to be workingwith Weald Technology Ltd.

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Coventry School o Art andDesign kick started its annualDegree Show at the end o

March with a game o human pinball inthe city centres Broadgate Square.

Students and sta rom theUniversity surprised onlookers inthe city centre with a giant infatablepinball which ormed part o a specialmusical per ormance by the citys all

emale roller derby team, the CoventryCity Derby Dolls.

UnsuspectingSaturday shoppersenjoyed impromptudance routinesby the Dolls who

skated to thesounds o Elton Johns

version o Pinball Wizard rom the1975 hit rock opera Tommy. TheDolls also gave roller derby demos andFree Radios Street Stars provided themusic, which all made or a great party

atmosphere. A special app in the orm o a

pinball game has also been createdto celebrate the launch o the DegreeShow and is available to download

rom the App Store.The celebration marked the launch

o art and design students DegreeShow 2013.

For more in ormation about thisyears Degree Show visithttp://www.covdegreeshow.org.uk.

Impressions o the events and work othe students can be ound athttp://www.covdegreeshow.org.uk/ gallery.php

Pinball wizards launch

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SGI leads in 1.5mboost to manu acturingCoventry Universitys SeriousGames Institute is set to playa leading role in a 1.5 millionresearch project which aims tohelp manu acturing frms trans ormtheir business models using gamestechnology.

The project, announced byUniversities and Science Minister

David Willetts shortly a ter he visitedthe Universitys campus, is part o awider 45 million unding package

rom the Engineering and PhysicalSciences Research Council (EPSRC)designed to improve manu acturingcompetitiveness in the UK.

Coventrys Serious Games Institute(SGI) will work with Aston Universityand the University o She feld on thegaming technology initiative, whosegoal will be to encourage UK frms to

use gamifcation to sell services aswell as products. The research team will create

serious games using three dimensionalvirtual worlds which can represent andhandle the complex data systems ocompanies looking to adopt productservice systems.

A host o industry partners including Ford Motor Company, MAN

Truck & Bus and Birmingham SciencePark will test out the games as parto the project.

Mr Willetts visited CoventryUniversity to meet with Vice-ChancellorPro essor Madeleine Atkins and see

the latest technologies available tosta and students in the new 55mengineering and computing acility.

Speaking be ore the governmentsManu acturing Summit, Mr Willettssaid: The UK has a proud historyo manu acturing, but to build onthis success industry needs accessto the very latest science and

technology. This 45 million packageo investment will see our world-classresearch base investigating innovativenew manu acturing equipmentand techniques. This will supportour industrial strategy in a range oimportant sectors, driving growth andkeeping the UK ahead in the globalrace.

Pro essor Sara de Freitas, Directoro the Serious Games and VirtualWorlds Applied Research Group at

the University, said: To be chosen tolead this project in partnership with Aston University and the Universityo She feld represents an excellentopportunity, particularly or theWest Midlands region which is nowpositioned very much as a globalleader in the serious games industry.

Below, Left to right Universities andScience Minister David Willetts meets thirdyear aerospace student Winnie Draper as heis shown the latest technology in CoventryUniversitys new 55m engineering andcomputing building; Pro essor Sara DeFreitas.

evolve update

Kirsty WhiteGeography, 2008Phil Dunham, his passion orhis subjects was endearing andmotivating. P.S: I love my job.

Jeremy SnookBusiness Studies,1976Keith Redhead, heturned economics

rom my least avourite subject tomy avourite. Every lecture was an

inspiration delivered o the cu .

Fakhrul IslamBusinessManagement, 2010My avourite teacherwas Paul Massiah,

o ering a great sense o humour ande ective teaching style.

Richard BrownSocial and Therapeutic

Horticulture, 2010Bob Heath, Ialways ound him knowledgeable,compassionate and inspirational.

Linsey-Marie ChampionOccupational Therapy, 2012Firstly I would like to say a massivethank you to all tutors who taught meat Cov Uni. I have three avourites:Mike Morgan, Julie Booth and SueOneil. All three are antastic in theirown way. Ill never orget any o them.

Gunther DeinlEuropeanConstruction, 2004Mr. Keith Chapman,because o his openmind, knowledge and

the experience he shared with us.

Olayinka MustaphaBiomedical Science,2012Dr Martin Cox.Passionate aboutwhat he does and his

subject area. He guided, supportedand encouraged me through my 4years at Coventry University. P.S. Thebest personal tutor!!!

Memory Bank Graduates remembertheir avourite lecturer

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Skeleton is a ast winter sportwhere athletes travel head frstdown a rozen bobsleigh track

on a sled. Athletes can experienceup to 5 g s and reach speeds over135 km/ph with their chin onlymillimeters o the ice. Jess, who isoriginally rom Sydney and now livingin Brisbane, competed in her frstskeleton race a ter only two weekso intense track training in Calgary.She then went on to compete in thelast round o the North AmericanCup in Lake Placid, New York, andfnished in a credible 12th placeamongst seasoned sliders. She hassince been accepted on a partialscholarship and will represent

Australia in the North American Cup2013/14 season with her ultimateaim to represent Australia at the2018 Winter Olympics in SouthKorea.

Jess began studying a SportsManagement degree in Queenslandat Bond University and the marketing


evolve sport

Coventry University Sports Marketing

graduate Jess Goldings need for speed has driven her from kartingto one of the worlds fastest winter sports skeleton racing.

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elements o the course reallyappealed to her, so she startedsearching or a course on SportsMarketing. I wanted to go overseasto study and Coventry University was(at the time) the most highly rankeduniversity in the UK or SportsMarketing. I started the course in2008 and graduated in 2011 withfrst class honours.

Despite missing her amily in Australia, Jess enjoyed her time inCoventry and was o ered someamazing opportunities. My lecturerswere really supportive and exible. Iwas paying or my degree out o myown pocket, so I didnt really havetime or socialising, although I wasalso lucky enough to receive one othe Universitys Sporting ExcellenceScholarships or my results inkarting.

Jess has been kart racing or 14years and was crowned AustralianKarting champion in 2005. She hasalso tested Formula BMW in the UKand Asia and raced three roundso the Australian Formula Fordchampionship in 2007.

Jess was introduced to thesport o skeleton racing by herphysiotherapist Chris Brady romthe Queensland Sport MedicineCentre. Chris has worked or manyyears with high profle athletes inmotorsport and Winter Olympicteams and suggested Jess shouldtry out skeleton racing, due to thesynergy between the sport andmotor racing.

Jess contacted the Australianskeleton team and the opportunityto get involved arose earlier thisyear. I was invited to try out or the

Australian Skeleton programme. Wehad a secret visit to Calgary, homeo the 1988 Winter Olympics andset to the cult flm Cool Runnings,where I was put through an intensiveon-track testing phase.

Jess has allen in love with hernew sport. The speed, race linesand everything about the sport reallyappeals to me. Believe it or not, I

eel really calm when I race. I reallylove it.

In her frst year as a developmentslider, Jess will only be partially

unded. She needs to cover hal oher racing season hersel , whichincludes ights, ground transport,

ood and general living expenses.She has a ull schedule o raceslined up in her bid to be selected orthe 2018 Winter Olympics in Korea.Jess is currently ranked 84th in theworld and fnished 28th in the North

American Cup 2012/13 season. Alongside her ull-time job andskeleton training commitments, sheis also kart racing and will competein two rounds o the Rotax Pro Tourand the Rotax Nationals in 2013.

I youd like to support Jess inraising the additional unds sheneeds to continue competing, thenplease visit:www.go undme.com/

jessgolding

evolve sport

The low down onskeleton racing

There are only 14 skeletoncircuits worldwide, with onenew track created once every

our years at new Winter Olympic sites

Men and Women compete inseparate disciplines

Athletes run over 24heats, depending on thechampionship circuit theycompete in

The athlete with the lowestcombined time in all heats isthe winner

There are our di erentchampionship circuits:1. World Cup2. Intercontinental Cup

3. Europe Cup4. North American Cup

To be a competitive skeletonslider, an athlete must have acombination o attributes: A quick start time A smooth load onto their sled The ability to steer through

twisting, high speed turns To steer a sled athletes

use their shoulders,legs and toes and musthave a comprehensiveunderstanding o sled

eedback and eel

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get connected Get back in touch with old riends.Coventry graduates reveal where they are now

1970s

Allan Ball Applied Chemistry(1978)Following graduation, Iworked as an analytical

chemist, supporting researchinto explosives, propellantsand rocket motors or sevenyears at the Ministry oDe ence. Whilst there, I wenton to take a MSc in Chemical Analysis.

I then trans erred to the Forensic Science Service (FSS),working as a Senior Forensic Scientist, giving evidence incourts o law or 16 years. Following other managerial roles, Ibecame the Quality Assurance Manager, gaining qualifcations

as a Lead Quality Auditor or ISO 9001 and a UKAS Assessoror ISO 17025.Following the closure o the FSS I moved to AlphaBiolabs

as their Quality, Health, Sa ety and Environmental SystemsManager, maintaining accreditations or ISO 17025, 9001 and14001.

My LinkedIn profle can be viewed atuk.linkedin.com/pub/allan-ball/2a/436/8a1

1980s

Graham Je sModern Studies (1988)

A ter 18 years working in privateindustry and ending up as UKOperations Manager or a largemultinational corporation, I got edup o working or idiots! Time togive something back, so I retrainedto be a teacher (and also obtainedmy Masters degree). The salarywent rom six fgures to (barely) fveovernight! The hours are just as long;conditions poor but what a ulflling

job. Hard work but so rewarding.

2000s

Cedric DezitterBusiness Administration (2008)I went to Australia in 2012 or a yearon a Working Holiday Visa and I amnow working in Amsterdam as anaccountant.


evolve get connected

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Ruth HamblettFoundation Diploma in

Art and Design (2009)Continued Studying with MastersContempory Arts Practice at

2010s

Mahmood Al Zaghal Aerospace Technology (2010)First o all I would like to thank Coventry University or keeping intouch with me. I was quite happy to see something rom where Istudied and where I spent un orgettable moments. I do really missthose days a lot, miss Coventry town, miss the uni and the weather.Miss my accommodation and riends... Miss the UK and I wish Icould come back and live in the UK. Its a great country indeed.


Laura SheppardEmergency andDisaster Management(2009)My degree has given me skillswhich I use daily within mycareer and has also providedme with opportunities to develop

urther. As Disaster Managementstudents we were lucky tohave additional support romHazel Swi t who looked a ter uson a personal level as well as

academically.

Coventry University and I amalso a 2012 graduate o BA Fine

Art 2.1 with Honors in betweenstudying or Foundation and thengoing on to present studies oMasters.

Gary SkippMotorsport Engineering (2010)I le t my position at TRW in Decemberto set up my own limited companya ter securing a contract with JLR or

2013.

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Rosie Kemp Theatre and Pro essional Practice (2011)

Im currently working or the bookshop and enjoying it. Im happy tosay I secured a place on a course at the University o Worcester.



Susan PhillipsEnglish (2011)Unlike many students who study to urther career prospects, I tookthis course or the sheer joy o learning, and the learning did indeed

bring me great pleasure. Due to long term illness I cannot workat present, however the career support given by this university isimmense and care ully tailored to the individual, as was the excellentdisability support I received throughout my time at the university. Thecourse is a balance between the academic, the pragmatic and theinspirational. All the tutors I studied with were dedicated, supportiveand enthusiastic. How could I pick just one who had the greateste ect on me? They all did in their own ways. In my time at theuniversity I learned and grew. For that I thank all concerned.

Alina MogosanuHuman Resource Management (2011)

Through hard work I managed to getpromoted twice in 6 months. My advice tostudents is to accept the job regardless othe initial salary and work your way up. Therewards are 10 times better.

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Louise DurrantDietetics (2012)I invented a board gameduring my university timeswhich has now been madeby a company to marketablestandard and I hope in thenext ew years it will be out inthe shops to buy.

E mai l y o ur up d a t e s f o r t he ne x t i s s ue o f e v o l v e t o a l u m n i @ c o v e n t r y .a c .u k


Madeeha BakaliPsychology (2012)I am not currently working as I got married straight a termy undergraduate Psychology Degree. So I wouldconsider mysel as a housewi e or now, but workingtowards and planning or getting selected on a PhDClinical Psychology course in the next academic yearor so.

Meja CalogiuriGeneral Management (2012)

I did enjoy my MBA. The lecturer and thestudents were wonder ul. I have made so many

riends rom di erent countries and pro essionalbackground. Overall the MBA was worthwhile.Dr Steve Jewell and Suresh George are thebest lecturers ever! The amount o knowledgethey hold is immeasurable, they are absolutely asolid asset to the MBA Team. Marie Hardie wasvery help ul, she will turn any negative situationinto a positive one. The leadership module isthe one I enjoyed the most. The knowledge I

have acquired has helped me to di erentiate aLeader rom a Manager and Im looking orwardto put all that into action in my uture career.

Neil CookeComputer & Control SystemsIm still just a dyslexic as ever. I do wish I could fnd myold riends who I did my degree with and I completed myPhD recently. Success ully patented a new way o doing

ull text search which is particularly good at detectingplagiarism in real time as tutors mark the work on MSWord. So in the uture - plagiarisers watch out.

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T rends in the automotiveindustry have olloweda similar pattern over the last ew years; whilstpromoting sa ety and

reducing carbon ootprints have beenprominent in manu acturers minds,per ormance still reigns supreme.

Auto companies are still acutely aware

that they must inject excitement intoevery vehicle they build.

Leading the way is Nissan, andits Nismo brand. Abbreviated romNissan Motorsport InternationalLimited, Nismo is hugely success ul inthe virtual world, as well as capturingthe imagination o high per ormancedrivers in the real world. Nismo carshave long been a fxture in gaming.In 2012, over 500 million virtual mileswere driven in Nissan vehicles inthe Gran Turismo 5 game and theJuke Nismo debuted in the Asphalt7: Heat game. In a drive to push theboundaries o game technologyand driving per ormance, Nissanhave been working closely withCoventry Universitys Serious GamesInternational to develop an iPad appinspired by the Nissan GTR.

The Nissan Nismo Statbox allowsthe Juke Nismo drivers to link their iPad with the car via Bluetoothand, i they mount the tablet on thedashboard, view an extra range ogauges as they drive. These gaugesdisplay data including exhaust and

water temperature, oil pressure,G-Force, and Turbo boost. Theresalso a lap-timer unction i the driver wants to take their Juke on the track.The app stores all the driving data,including lap times, on the device.The app positions the Juke Nismoright where Nissan wants it - aimedsquarely at the Playstation generation.

Further updates could includegamifcation techniques which willintroduce a virtual element to the realworld with direct links to social media.

Nissan envisages a potentialonline community o Nismo ownersswapping lap times and statistics viaFacebook and Twitter.

Nissan approached Serious GamesInternational (SGIL) or support withthe development o the app becauseo SGILs reputation or applyinggames technology to create engagingbusiness solutions. Felix Bradshaw,Business Development Director atSGIL, explained: At SGIL we have aunique approach to solving problemsand have the advantage o a hugepool o expertise at the Universitythat we can tap into. We worked withNissan very closely, listening to their brie , developing the concept andcontinually talking with them on astep by step process to deliver thefnal product. Our pedigree in videogames, including Formula 1 and

V-Rally, enabled us to understand thepsyche o the modern Nissan owner.

SGIL collaborated with Nissan to buildthe bespoke iPad app or their Nismorange which could revolutionisethe way customers interact withtheir vehicles. SGIL worked on thisinitial stage prototype to provide ademonstration o the Nismo Statboxapplication at the launch event o theNissan Juke Nismo.

Nissan has been at the ore ronto cutting edge technology inthis sector and Richard Candler,Nissan International SA thinks thedevelopment o the app showcasesa lot o opportunity to the automotiveIT area. Richard said: The NismoStatbox app is a working prototypethat previews Nissans vision o aconnected community o Nismo ans.With this approach, we can add theinnovative technology rom the NissanGTR to more accessible products likethe Nissan Juke Nismo and excitemore customers.

Tim Lu t, Managing Director,Serious Games International adds:Utilising this technology has enabledus to create an app which givesNissan consumers the exact statisticsand key in ormation they need romtheir vehicle on demand.

The benefts or consumers arecountless and with the potential todevelop this technology urther, SGILis looking orward to developing

urther opportunities that will add realvalue to Nissans product port olio.

Coventry University excels at creating partnershipsand building strong relationships with iconic companies.

A recent collaboration with Nissan placesCoventry Universitys expertise at drivers fngertips.


evolve research

Putting drivers back

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evolve research

in control

Biography Felix Bradshaw, BusinessDevelopment Director SGIL

Felix has more than 16 yearsexperience in working within emergingand interactive technology orcompanies such as Gartner, Insightand F1. He has run a $5m o fce orSouthPeak & 7Sixty games leading theirdigital game strategy and managingtraditional sales in every territory outsideo North and South America. Felixis confdent that his skills, expertiseand passion will contribute to SGILsmajor success. He is passionate aboutmaking an impact on peoples livesusing games technology and believesthat SGIL is positioned to be theknowledge base and industry leader toservice the Google Specs generation.

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evolve development india

Building international bridgeswith children and youngpeople in developingcountries also motivates ellowphilanthropists and entrepreneurs

Jas Sandhu (Electrical and ElectronicEngineering, 1974) and Alan Malik.

10 years ago, Jas ounded aootball academy in the village o

Rurka Kalan (near Jalandhar inIndia) to provide the children o hishometown with a positive outlet todivert them rom drugs to a moreactive, productive and healthyli estyle. YFC Rurka Kalan hasdeveloped substantially over the last

decade and now works in 9 separatevillages. It has broadened its workto support education, health and theenvironment and annually beneftsmore than two thousand children

between the ages o 4 and 16. As an alumnus o Coventry

University, Jas was keen to developlinks between YFC Rurka Kalan andhis alma mater to provide currentstudents with an opportunity tovisit the academy and utilise theskills they have developed on theircourses. Thanks to the vision o bothJas and Alan (CEO o leading IT frmsExaso t plc and Bit10 Ltd), the frst

group o Sports Science studentsvisited the Punjab in March 2012and another three students ollowedsix months later.

The students have been working

with the Football Academy toprovide some basic sports scienceeducation to the children andcoaches o the club. This involvedvarious training sessions with thegroup in addition to undertakingpreliminary research on how theUniversity can assist the charity in itsadvancement in the long-term.

In March 2013, the projectwas expanded to provide English

Forging links through

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evolve development india

FOOTBALL

Language students rom theUniversity with the opportunity tovisit the Godiva Lions CoventryPublic School in Nurpur and teachEnglish as a oreign language. Sami

Bryant, a second year English and TEFL student who took part in thelatest programme said:

Being given the opportunity to goout to India and teach in the schoolwith the wonder ul children has beena major li e changing experience

or me both personally andpro essionally. Teaching in countryis totally di erent rom teaching inthe UK and this amazing chance has

opened my eyes to the path I wantto take as an EFL teacher in the longterm. Witnessing frst-hand the greatthings that are being done out thereto give the kids a fghting chance o

a better li e is a totally inspiring andhumbling experience. The rewardsand positives rom the trip are ar toomany to list and the experience willstay with me or the rest o my li e.

Thanks to the generosity oCoventry bene actors, there areplans to send another six studentsout to India in September to urtherdevelop the relationships betweenthe University and the region.

By supporting Coventry Universitystudents to gain valuable globalexperiences alongside developinglong-term initiatives in communitiesin Jordan and India, our alumni are

providing li e-changing opportunitiesin more ways than one.

For urther in ormation on theseprojects or to learn more about howyou could support the developmento the University, please contactChris Smith on024 7688 8311 oremail [email protected]

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evolve big interview

T

he London 2012 Olympics was a landmarkevent in British history. Thousands o athletesachieved their li etime ambition and millions opeople around the world watched as they werepresented with their winners medals. For one

Coventry graduate this was an extra special time. FergusFeeney, who graduated rom Industrial Product Design in1996, is now Programme Director at The Royal Mint. Fergushad the enviable task o managing the design, creation andproduction o all the victory medals or the 2012 Olympics.

Fergus was born in 1972 in Dublin. With his mothera teacher and his ather working as an engineer at theGuinness brewery, Fergus believes it was his ather whoignited his interest in engineering, which ultimately led to hischoice to study Product Design. Having completed a HNDin Industrial Design at Carlow Institute o Technology, Fergus

started looking at universities. I already had connectionswith Coventry. My two uncles worked at Standard Triumphand I knew o the Midlands reputation or engineering, soit was an obvious choice or me. I had signed up or therugby team and Gaelic ootball team be ore Id even arrivedin the city.

Fergus moved to Coventry in 1994 and headed straightor the Students Union. I knew the SU was the heart o

campus and that it would be a great place to make new

riends. I got a job as a Bar Steward-come-Doorman tohelp pay the bills. I quickly made lots o new riends. I thinkyoud say I managed to work hard and play hard.

Fergus spent his frst year in Priory Hall, be ore moving toRad ord, where he shared a house with our o his riends.We all studied Product or Transport Design and we allworked at the SU, so we had lots in common and lots olaughs. Were still in touch now and have regular catch-upson campus.

There was an option to take a placement year partway through his degree course, but Fergus decided

he wanted to get out into the workplace straight away. A ter fnishing his degree with a 2:1, Fergus started his job search in the Midlands whilst updating his skills withsome computer aided design modules. In the time I wasstudying, the design industry had moved rom 2D sketchesto CAD/CAM work, so I knew I needed these skills to make

mysel attractive to employers. The lecturers I remembermost ondly are Dave Edge and Roger Perks; they wereinspirational and very supportive. Even then, CoventryUniversity was very tuned into industry. They showed ushow to make the transition rom study to work and I elt very

lucky to have that guidance.Whilst all his ellow graduates on the course were lookingor jobs in the automotive industry, Fergus decided to ollow

his own path. Telecoms was a growing industry so thatswhere I ocused my energy. I was invited to a selection weekwith Ericsson and Nokia and at the end o the week waso ered a place on the Nokia Graduate Scheme. I startedworking at Nokia in 1997.

Fergus was in at the deep end. Working on billion dollarprojects and swi tly realising the di erence between studentli e and pro essional li e, he adapted quickly and moved up

the career ladder into project management. He worked inHelsinki at Head O fce or a year as a Programme Managerbe ore moving on to Panasonic in 2003.

When he joined Panasonic at the age o 30, Fergus wasthe youngest R&D manager worldwide. Based in Cardi ,he headed up consumer appliances and regularly travelledback and orth to China and Japan. Fergus passion or golled to his next career move. A ter a chance meeting on the

airway with some o Terry Matthews team (owner o the

Celtic Manor and IT and telecoms company MITEL), Ferguswas recruited as Head o Project Management or Europe,Middle East and Asia and during his three years there wasresponsible or all the IT and telephones required to supportthe Ryder Cup.

Fergus was headhunted or his current role at The RoyalMint. The Mint was looking or a Director o the OlympicProgramme, overseeing the production o medals anddelivering commemorative coins or the internationalmarket. Fergus believes his rounded experience andknowledge o product design, li e cycle and delivery helped

secure the role. Having been at The Royal Mint or threeyears, he is still relishing the challenges.

My role generally relates to the delivery o coin andmedal projects. Ive recently delivered the Diamond Jubileeprogramme which reached 20 million international salesand the Olympic programme which reached more than

WINNING DESIGN COINING OLYMPIC SUCCESS

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100 million sales. The Olympic Medals were designedby artists selected by LOCOG and my role on behal o

The Royal Mint was to provide consultancy advice; tell theartists what was possible in terms o manu acturing andin uencing the design within the realms o the Mint.

When the frst medals were presented, Fergus eltimmensely proud and a little nervous. Delivering themedals was a very pressurised time. It is the most highprofle project Ive ever worked on and it couldnt possibly

ail. It was quite overwhelming to see the frst one placedaround an Olympians neck. I was part o a wider team o

tool makers, engravers, marketers, but we all played ourpart. We produced 5000 medals; 4700 went to Olympiansand Paralympians and 300 were sent back to The RoyalMint to be melted down. There are only 4 other sets in theworld now.

Fergus continues to work on various projects or The

Royal Mint, including developing medals or troops in Iraqand A ghanistan, coins or the international market andworking with the Treasury on themes or new coins. WorldWar One is a huge project coming up and The Royal Mintare also looking to establish a visitors centre at their base inSouth Wales, which Fergus will oversee.

Fergus considers himsel lucky to have been part othese high profle projects. Nothing will compare to beingpart o the production o the Olympic Medals. Although, mytwin daughters were born around the start o the Olympics,so it was special or more than one reason.

I have three daughters now and Ive revisited Coventrywith my wi e. The city and the University have a special placein my heart and I enjoy returning to campus to see howthings have changed. Maybe one day Ill be commissionedto make a Coventry coin?

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lettersS h a re yo u r v ie w

s

w i t h o t h e r Fr ie nd s o f

Co ve n t r y Un i vers i t y a nd

yo u c o u ld w in a 25

A m a z o n vo uc he r.

Dear FOCUS , Thank you or a wonder ul a ternoon in Aprilwhen I attended the E&C Alumni and StudentEvent. I thoroughly enjoyed the a ternoon(as did my Mum and our riend) and I was soimpressed by the new building. It seemed tome to be a wonder ul environment or studentsto be in and I am really pleased, based onwhat I saw, to know that they have access to

some o the very latest acilities to help them intheir studies. It almost made me wish I coulddo my degree all over again!

Please would you pass on my thanks to JoshuaHolmes or giving me a personal tour o the building. Itwas really touching to hear Joshua put into words whatI eel about Coventry and Coventry University and tospeak o the pride that he eels or having been a studentat Coventry eelings that match 100% with my own.Based on my own experiences and those o people I

met at Coventry, I have always elt that the Coventrygraduates are people who are ully prepared to go intotheir chosen pro essions and build solid careers basedon the application o the skills they acquired whilst at theuniversity and not being a raid to work hard in order toachieve. I like to think that my own career is based onthis and listening to Joshua last week makes me thinkthat this will be true or him too.

I always claim that I had the best 4 years o my li e when Iwas in Coventry and at the Polytechnic (as it was then). I am

certain that there were times that were not completely happy when I was worried about completing coursework orwhatever but overall it was a good time in my li e and onewhich I always look back upon with ondness and pride.

star letter

Seeing the new buildingmade me think how much better acilities are now ordisabled students. When I was a student, acilitieswere not always ideal but I got through by sheerdetermination and with a lot o support and goodwill

rom sta and ellow students or which I will alwaysbe truly grate ul. There were times though when it wasnot always clear how I would overcome a particularsituation (although things usually turned out ok) and thissometimes diverted my attention away rom what I was

at Coventry principally to do i.e. to study. I acilities arenow signifcantly improved or disabled students, as itseemed to me that they are when I saw the new building,then it makes me happy to think that they can devotemore attention to their studies without needing to be soconcerned about other aspects o their time at university.

I wish all sta and students o the Engineering andComputing Faculty all the very best. I will remember myvisit or a very long time to come and I thank you again

or inviting me to attend.

Brian Davies(Computer Science, 1989)


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Please send letters to:Letters, Development and Alumni O fce, Coventry University,

Priory Street, Coventry, CV1 5FB, or email [email protected]

Dear FOCUS ,In September 1963, twelve students rom a variety oengineering companies met to commence a 3-year

Higher National Diploma in Metallurgy at the thenLanchester College o Technology. This course enabled

ull time study rom September to March and thenindustrial placements or the summer months. TheCollege department was a combined Chemistry andMetallurgy unit, based in what was then D Block, nowthe James Starley Building, under the leadership o DrMaurice Foss. At the time the course started, it was stillbeing built, and was the longest structure o its kind inthe UK. It was also known at the time that it was sinkingat either end and rein orcements had to be put in place

to support it. It was also not unknown or students towalk the planks to get to the necessary lecture roomsbecause all the ooring had not been completed. Therewas no completed Students Union Building and theGolden Cross was the local students hostelry. (It isun ortunate that it has been spoilt with an open planinterior). There were also no Halls o Residence at thetime and student digs were all over the city. All o usobtained their HNDs and stayed on or a urther year toobtain a Diploma in Metallurgy, which at the time was arecognised qualifcation or pro essional membership o

the then Institution o Metallurgists, o which many o usbecame members.

Following our departure in the summer o 1967, we havemet every 3-5 years at various places in the UK to rekindleold riendships. With two members resident in Tasmania and

Australia, whenever they visited the UK it was an excuseor another reunion weekend! When it was possible, a past

lecturer o the Lanchester College, Ronald Blackwell, also joined us. He became e ectively a ather fgure to us all

rom the frst Friday when we met him in September 1963. This riendship has happily lasted, and in June 2013, ten othe original twelve celebrated the 50th anniversary reunion inCoventry. Through the good o fces o one o our members,Dr Tony Scanlon, a visit to the University was arranged orWednesday 26th June.

This proved most enjoyable and in ormative andwe had the opportunity to see how the LanchesterCollege as we knew it, had in 50 years become oneo the new and established Universities in the UK. Avisit to The Engineering and Computing Building clearlydemonstrated that Coventry University is at the ore ronto new technology. A visit to the old D Block (JamesStarley Building) was naturally undertaken, and broughtback many memories. The photo shows us on the stepsunder the porch o D Block, which is obviously a newaddition.

We all eel extremely proud that we had an excellenthigher education at the Lanchester College which israpidly becoming a very established University. The city oCoventry can only be proud o its achievement.

Barry Leat(Metallurgy 1967)

Names o past students in the photo le t to right;Back row: David Roberts, Geo rey Hinson.Middle row: Barry Leat, Martin Collige, Alan

Jenkins, Tony Scanlon.Front row: David Oddy, John Ross, Michael

Collins, Garth Perry.Unable to attend: Jim Williams, Gordon

Whitmore and RonaldBlackwell (Lecturer)

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evolve groups

T wo brothers rom Bangladeshrecently organised a specialalumni event to celebrate theexciting work being carried

out in the new Engineering and

Computing Faculty building.Rinat and Rahul Malik both cameto Coventry University to studyMechanical Engineering. Rinatgraduated in 2011 and is now workingas a Design Engineer and Rahul is

about to complete his fnal year. The event, held on Saturday27 April, brought together

alumni and students. It was anopportunity or alumni to see

the new Faculty buildingand fnd out about currentstudents work, meet

up with their ormerclassmates and

lecturers. It was also achance or the students

to network with alumni,beneft rom their experience

and knowledge o the world owork and learn more about the

benefts o the alumni programmeat Coventry University that awaitsthem a ter graduation.

Rinat said: I graduated rom theuniversity in July 2011 and the new

Engineering Building was openedin September 2011, so I narrowly

missed out on being part o thisexciting change. Ive been

able to visit the new buildingor various seminars

and workshops andthink it is stunning.Even though part o

me elt sad that Idmissed out on being a

student in the building,

it also made me eel very proud othe University. I elt strongly that otheralumni would eel the same way, so Istarted working on this event to sharethe building with other graduates just

like me.Rahul has been able to enjoy thenew building during his fnal year. Hesaid: We all have been waiting or thenew building or a while, but it wasworth waiting or. The acilities are veryimpressive. There is plenty o space orstudents to have group meetings or

just socialise and having everything inone place makes li e really easy.

During his studies Rinat worked

alongside sta in the Universitysalumni o fce and was able to seefrst-hand how many success ul,pro essionals have graduated romthe University. Rinat was keen to learn

rom these people and knew that hisellow students would also beneft rom

sharing experiences about securing asuccess ul career on graduation.

Rinat continued: As an alumnusmysel now, I was keen to know what

my other ellow alumni are doing andI wanted to share this with others.I ormed a new group through theUniversitys Alumni association,FOCUS on Engineering andComputing. The idea behind creatingthe group is to o er a orum whereeveryone can share their experiences.

The event also marked the launch othis group.

More than a hundred visitors attend

the event; a mix o alumni, currentstudents and sta . The alumni enjoyedseeing how the aculty has evolved,network with ellow alumni as wellas current students. It helped themcontinue to eel part o the University.

Guests were welcomed to theevent by Associate Dean, Dr MikeBlundell. This was ollowed by atalk rom Mr Ian Dunn, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Bill Dunn, Associate

Head Mechanical Engineering,and Josh Holmes, a currentstudent in the Faculty.

Everyone was verynostalgic over lunch andenjoyed exploring thenew building, networkingand socialising. Rinatcontinued: The vibe rom allthe visitors was that the eventwas hugely popular. I am planning

to make events like this a regularoccurrence and maybe in uture, aswell as having bigger event or thewhole aculty, I am thinking aboutmore specifc course based reunionsand events as well!

The new EC aculty alumnigroup is now on LinkedIn. Anyoneinterested in joining the group iswelcome to do so at this linkhttp://www.linkedin.

com/groups/FOCUS-on-Engineering-Computing-4906825 .I youre not on LinkedInemail [email protected] or contact Rinatdirectly at [email protected].

Rinat concluded: The eventwas a success because it was acollaborative social and networking

event with everyone workingtogether to create a great event. The day was a journey rom past topresent, it was about building lastingrelationships where we all had ourparts to play.

A family affair

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I remember some wise wordssaid at my graduation ceremonyin Coventry Cathedral, you haveearned the ticket that can opendoors, but it is not the passport tosuccess; that depends on you.

Those words really stuck withme and have become a bit o amantra.

Internationalisation lies at theheart o the story o Stevenssuccess. He was born in Englandand raised in Mexico, be orereturning to England to prepare

or university. He chose CoventryUniversity because o the highranking o Business Studiescourses in various league tables aswell as the position o the campusin the city. He studied InternationalBusiness Management andgraduated in 2011.

During his frst year, Steven livedin Priory Hall. He has mixed eelingsabout his frst year but during hissecond year, he discovered theUniversitys Erasmus programmewhich o ered him the opportunityto study at a Spanish university and

live fve minutes rom the beach in Valencia.

Steven says: Erasmus is anamazing opportunity to live in a

oreign country and be away romamily and riends or the frst time.

The act that you are in a strangeenvironment in a di erent cultureautomatically creates the needto build relationships and culturalawareness by accepting di erencesin the ways people and countriesthink and work. I had a taste o realli e pressure during my Erasmusyear. I had to deal with a newculture and system, and I neededto take 20+ modules just to getenough credits.

In his fnal year Steven returnedto Coventry and rented a2-bedroom at in the city centrewhich allowed him to ocus onhis dissertation. I loved being astudent because you dont havemany responsibilities. Completingmy dissertation was a real test

or me though. It consumed myli e. Every waking moment, andeven every sleeping moment, you

are constantly thinking about thisone topic. The best part about adissertation is when you actuallyfnish it. So much o your hardwork and time went into it thatyou actually eel proud o whatyou have researched and amazedhow a simple idea can grow intointeresting research.

Stevens ree time at CoventryUniversity was spent as a membero the American Football team.In my frst year, it was a jointteam with Warwick University. Bythe time I came back rom myErasmus year, the CU Jets wereabout to start their frst o fcialseason. I loved being part o ateam and success ully workingtogether. I even got the nicknameVelcro, hope ully I might still beremembered! Steven and his teammates spent their time away romthe pitch in Rileys and organised a

ew events in 54 to raise money orthe team.

As graduation was looming,Steven thought it was time tostart looking or an internship or


evolve profle

Passportto success At the tender age o 25, Steven Bryan has worked hard tosecure a success ul career as Financial Controller or anautomotive company based in Spain.

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a graduate job. He went to theInternational Mobility O fce andheard about a brand new openingthat required a uent Spanishspeaker. I like to think I was in theright place at the right moment,laughs Steven. At frst I saw it asa paid summer in Spain, but a tera week in the company, I knew thiswas my uture and I realised whichpath I needed to take to achievemy goal.

Stevens internship took placeat MAHLE, a German company inthe automotive industry that has aproduction plant on the outskirts oBarcelona, Spain.

Six months later, Steven waso ered a three month extension andthe role o Logistics and FinanceJunior Controller a moment heconsiders pivotal to his career.

As Financial Controller, Stevenis now responsible or the mostbasic expenses to the operatingresult. This includes budgetingand planning, using in ormation

rom the sales orecast, as well asdeveloping tools to simpli y fnancial

processes whilst ensuring controlintegrity. Steven is accountable orensuring that the data he managesis accurate and supports businessrequirements and decisions toenable the success o the company.

In the short-term Steven is keento build on his experience within thecompany but hed like to combine

that with a Masters course. Fornow though, Steven is enjoyingthe benefts o living in Spain. It isquite easy to live overseas when theweather is per ect 9 months a year,but every country has its problems.

The Spanish Government seem tohave more bureaucracy than mostbut speaking the language is a

defnite advantage.While most people living in the

UK would consider a siesta to be agreat way to break up the day, orSteven its a source o rustration.During Siesta time everythingis closed and you cannot goanywhere. Most banks and othergovernmental institutions work rom9am to 2pm, making it tricky or

ull-time workers to fnd the timeto visit.

Steven keeps in contact with theInternational O fce at the Universityand is still in close contact with

riends rom his course and his American Football team mates.

Looking back on my time atCoventry University, I can easilysay the best thing I did was takingan internship in an internationalcompany. Its the only way to seethe business on a global scale.With hard work, dedication anddetermination you could be o ereda position within the company.

evolve profle

I knew this wasmy future and Irealised which pathI needed to take toachieve my goal.

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evolve postgraduate


P O S T G R A D UA T E S P O T L I G

H T

An exciting year for the Global LeadersProgramme an exclusive extracurricular programme for Postgrads

The Global Leaders Programme (GLP) o ersa success ul and inspirational experience ormore than 600 members involved. Over thepast year, students have taken part in a rangeo interactive workshops to engage their minds,adapt their thinking processes and bring out theirinner leader. Members have gained exposure tointernationally renowned speakers, visited globalorganisations within the UK and abroad, andexperienced new cultures. Highlight:s Special guest speaker Justin King

CBE, CEO o Sainsburys, delivering aninspirational talk to GLP members on hiscareer to date, experiences and top 10tips to succeed as a business leader

Business Leader Talk series with morethan 40 guest speakers rom a range o

global organisations including Microso t,MasterCard Europe, Caterpillar, JaguarLand Rover, Standard Chartered Bank, IBMand many more

International visit to India in March 2013,visiting cultural landmarks including theGolden Temple, engaging in insight ul talks onIndian culture and business, and undertakingvisits to Indian industry including DellComputers and In oSys

Visit to Hong Kong in April 2013, experiencingChinese culture and gaining exposure o howorganisations operate across the globe, withvisits to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange andTamar Government Headquarters

The year is not over yet though. Between Julyand September GLP members will have the

opportunity to travel worldwide includingBremen and Frank urt, Belgium, Bangalore andNew Delhi, China and Malaysia. These trips willinclude insights into global organisations likeMercedes, Frank urt Stock Exchange and theEuropean Central Bank.

[The GLP] has given me more confdence touse new communication skills and explorethese through my art practice, developingthese into a per ormance piece and using themin a place where viewers can access thesenewly learnt processes. Ruth Hamblett ,

Contemporary Art Practice MA

For more in ormation on the Global Leaders

Programme visit www.coventry.ac.uk/[email protected] orLike us on www.facebook.com/cuglp

*500 discount o any ull-time postgraduate course,

whenever you graduated

Theres always something interesting going on withpostgraduates on campus. Find out more, right here.

A l u m n i

d i s c o u n t

w o r t h 5 0 0 *

LEADERS PROGRAMME

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evolve postgraduate

MA Graphic Design students o CoventrySchool o Art and Design were recentlyinvited to submit logo and brandingproposals or a joint project betweenCoventry University, UK Active and nine

other universities across the UK to promoteparticipation in physical activity by sta andstudents in a un, in ormal way,

The project, titled One Big Thing, waslaunched on 17 May with the aim o raising

unds or charity. Each University willdonate the unds raised to a charity o theirchoice. It is expected that up to 30 otherUK universities will be involved by 2014.

The winning design was produced byPaul Owen. Kukri Sports Limited, a leading

sportswear supplier, generously donated2000 t-shirts printed with the One BigThing logo.

Deputy Director o Student Healthand Well Being, Vince Mayne said: The

quality o the designs, in particular theunderstanding o the market and theinterpretation o the brie were all o thehighest order. I circulated the designsaround the national group and received anumber o excellent comments back romthe group. We elt the winning designembodied the campaign and appearedacross the UK at ten Universities this year,and hope ully at many more next year!

Student designs logo or One Big Thing

Physiotherapist scoopsaward or academicexcellence

Postgraduate student Julie Clayton hasbeen awarded the Universitys WaterstonesBookshop prize or academic excellence.

Julie, who lives in Leicester, has recentlycompleted an MSc in Physiotherapy. She wasput orward or the award by Course DirectorJulie Sellars or her excellent academic resultsand her contribution to the course.

Julie chose to study the course on a part-time basis as a way o challenging hersel ,keeping up to date and increasing her learning.

Julie is now working to get her dissertationpublished in an academic journal and keepingbusy at home with her husband, Alex, and twochildren, Harry, aged 11, and Robert, aged 9.

F ull yprepare d fo r t h e c ha llen ge s o f you r ro le i n t he com m uni ty?T he new inta ke o Coven try Universitys highly regard ed M A in Co mmunity Co hes ion Man age men t qu alifca tion or pr o es sion aland p r ac titioners wor king on com mun ity relations and coh esio n co mmen ce s on 29 th Septe mber 20 13.

T he re a re sti ll plac esand it s n ot too la te t o join ! I nt e res ted ?Pleas e cont act Pau l Rouse or urther det ails. Dr op u s an em ail to register your intere s t witho ut a ny urther ob liga tion.

Pau l Rous e, S en ior L ect ure r tel +44 (0) 24 7 76 5 5752 m ob +44 (0) 75 95 31 3 50 6pa ul.r ous e@coventr y.ac .uk w w w.s oci alre lat ion s.o rg.u k ww w.c ov e nt r y.a c.u k

Ben Pollard is now coming towardsthe end o a Masters in SportsMarketing. While or some, nancing apostgraduate course can be di cult,Ben ound a solution that is workingwell or him. I looked at universities inLondon which had similar courses, but

some were charging around 12,000ees and then Id have to pay or

accommodation and ood, he explains.The Coventry ees were 4,800. I can

live at home and continue with the part-time weekend job I had when I was anundergraduate.

Like many graduates, despiteachieving a 2:1, Ben struggled to makea breakthrough in the job market a tergraduation so his intention was to

develop his interest in Sports Marketingand that the Masters will give himthe edge when hes back in the jobmarket this September. I decided to

do a Masters, hoping that the extraquali cation would help me get a job in12 months time.

Come September, Ben knows hellhave to ace the job market again. Atthe end o the day its about nding that

rst job, he says. Thats when you can

start to build experience, and Im hopingthat getting a Masters will help me takethat step.

Masters student balances costs while developing his passion or sport

I youd like urther in ormation on any o our Postgraduate courses, visit www.coventry.ac.uk/postgraduate,

email [email protected] or call our postgraduate team on 024 7765 4321.

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Bob BirdLecturer in Digital Forensics

& Ethical Hacking

Do you enjoy your job?

I do enjoy my job, not least because I have adedicated digital orensics acility that is enabling meto teach a new generation o investigators the joys o

digital orensics.I teach undergraduate and postgraduate students and

continue to fnd that our Laboratory sessions are the thingthat students enjoy the most.

Digital Forensics remains a ascinating, engaging subjectwhich is a joy to teach. I introduced AccessData ForensicInvestigator ACE (Accredited Certifed Examiner) certifcationopportunities or students enabling them to gain real worldqualifcations in preparation or their uture careers. The

acilities in the new Engineering and Computing building arethe envy o many peers, inside and outside the University.

I am young enough to enjoy a second career and amortunate to fnd one that gives me a buzz. It is very di erent

to my experiences as a police o fcer and in some casesevery bit as rustrating, but ultimately rewarding.

What is the highlight o your career?Im still relatively new to the world o higher educationso Im hoping the highlights are yet to come.However, Im very proud to have achieved the level I

am currently enjoying in teaching. I thought I would only workpart-time ollowing my retirement but that plan hasnt quiteworked out.

Im excited to progress urther in my academic career. Thenext step or me would be to become a Senior Lecturer andthen who knows whats next?

Where did your career begin?My academic career began as a part time HourlyPaid Lecturer in 2007 in the Faculty o Health and Li eSciences on the Forensic Investigations Course.

Id recently retired as a police o fcer and wanted to fndsomething new that would keep my interest. I was askedto provide consultancy support or the new BSc in ForensicInvestigations. I advised on curriculum content and wassubsequently invited to become a lecturer on the course.

Whilst I was working as an Hourly Paid Lecturer, Iqualifed with a Masters in Forensic Computing and decidedto apply or a ull time role in the Engineering and ComputingFaculty which I joined in March 2013. They liked me thatmuch they built a new aculty building! I am now ProgrammeLeader or the MTech (In osys India), Programme Director orthe Masters in Forensic Computing and Module Leader onother Digital Forensics modules.

My career with the police provided me with a range oskills and experiences to become an e ective teacher. I wasinvolved or many years with traditional orensic science atcrime scenes. I was a Detective Chie Inspector per ormingthe role o Senior Investigating O fcer at murder scenes. Iwas on the Major Investigation Unit investigating murders

across the West Midlands. I also established the High Tech Crime Unit or Coventry and the Child Protection Unitresponsible or o ences against children. This was broughtabout by Operation Ore, at the time the largest investigationinto o ences involving child pornography and was the birtho Digital Forensic Units (DFUs) as they are known now.

Id always had connections with the University, andeven used to play cricket or Coventry Police against theLanchester Poly Cricket Team. Id also had pro essionaldealings with the University in the late 70s and early 80swhen student political activism was more apparent. I was

deployed on public order duties during demonstrations.

Q A

Q

A

Q A

D espite being relatively new to the education sector, orensics expert Bob Birdbrings more than 30 years experience as a Senior Police O fcer to his role in DigitalForensics at Coventry University.

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The facilities in the new Engineering

and Computing building are theenvy of many peers, inside and

outside the University.

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Be part of somethingCoventry University is part o an exciting new initiativto change the way students und their education


evolve student under

It is believed that every yearthousands o people miss out onUK urther and higher education

or lack o unds. StudentFunderis a social enterprise working tochange this.

Coventry is the rst academicinstitution to ormally partner withStudentFunder to pilot crowd unding

or students. Crowd unding involvesindividuals collectively pooling theirmoney, usually via the internet, tosupport an initiative. StudentFunderis applying this concept to educationand helps students to crowd undthe cost o their university tuition

ees or accommodation. Fundersthat contribute to the studentscampaigns are assured that undsraised are paid directly to theuniversity. I a campaign doesnot reach its unding target bya speci c date, all unds arereturned to the unders.

Crowd unding is all about givingpeople the opportunity to be parto something really exciting, in thiscase, students li e stories andcareers. Students can o er attractive

and innovative rewards in exchangeor contributions and pledge to

support other students in the uture,continuing the education cycle.

StudentFunders ounder, JuanGuerra, grew up in Mexico and wasaccepted at a German university,but did not have the unds to takeup the o er. As a last resort, hesent out an email to everyonehe knew selling insurance andpets and asking or help. Eventhough no one bought insuranceor pets, the response wasoverwhelming and people helpedhim in all sorts o ways. In 2004,he was pioneering crowd unding

or education be ore the termcrowd unding even existed.Through that process Juan oundmentors, and eventually landedhis rst job through one o them.Today, StudentFunder is helpingothers do the same.

Juan explains: Withcrowd unding, the initial 30% iscritical. Only a ter a campaign hasreached 30% o its target does itbecome really appealing to other

potential unders to participate.People want to back winners!Crowd unding is hard work, butStudentFunder provides admittedstudents with the support o apersonal coach and the in ormationand advice they need to crowd undsuccess ully.

To help kick start the newinitiative, Coventry University iso ering a 1,000 top up to the

rst 15 students who can raise1,000 rom 10 people in the shapeo donations and/or loans. Thisfexibility helps students appeal toa wider audience o unders: rom

riends and amily to universityalumni and organisations thatcommission research or consultingwork rom them. By crowd unding,students raise unds, but alsobuild relationships with mentors,potential employers and thecommunity. On StudentFunder,small contributions stack up to abig di erence and the companyseeks to make it easier and sa er

or people to invest in each other,so everyone can bene t.

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BIGevolve student under

Charles, a Peace and ReconciliationStudies student at CoventryUniversity, was struggling to

und his PhD during his secondyear. The bene actor who hadsupported him through his frst yearpassed away, leaving Charles indesparate need o unding. He ran amoderately success ul crowd undingcampaign, raising 411, but usedStudentFunders templates to reach

out to his network. Through this, hewas able to mobilise support andsecure 10,000 in sponsorship.

Guelord is also studying a Mastersin Peace and Reconciliation. Hestudies remotely and is based inGoma, in the East o the DemocraticRepublic o Congo. He was strugglingto get onto his course in the frstplace. With the help o StudentFunderGuelord has already raised just

under 2k online and secured somescholarship unding.

O ten students do not voice theact that they are struggling fnancially.

StudentFunder gives them theconfdence to communicate with theuniversity and fnd out whether thereare any orms o support available tothem. Luckily, this was the case orGuelord and Charles.

StudentFunder helps crowd undstudents education while buildingtheir networks and honing their skills.

Visit www.student under.com or more in ormation.

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Crowdfunding in action at CU


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Over 30 alumni and sta attended this years FOCUS onLaw get-together in early June. The FOCUS on Lawgroup brings together Coventry Law alumni rom all yearsto network and socialise with ellow pro essionals.

This year, the group met in the lovely surroundingso Coombe Abbey in Coventry and the a ternooncommenced with welcome drinks in the High Court.

Steve Foster, Principal Lecturer in Law, delivered thekeynote speech, highlighting the Law departments history,as well as the latest developments at the University, ollowedby a traditional A ternoon Tea.

I you would like to join the group, visithttp://alumni.coventry.ac.uk/page.aspx?pid=1667or email [email protected]

FOCUS on Law

The next Alumni vs Students Sports Day willtake place in April/May 2014. To register yourinterest, please email [email protected].

O ver 200 alumni and students took on thechallenge at the annual Alumni vs. StudentsSports Day this April in Coventry. For thesecond year running, the alumni emerged asthe overall winners, having beaten the studentteams at Hockey, Tennis, Rugby and Netball.Congratulations!

A ter a day o matches in the sunshine, the teamscongregated in Square 1 or ood and the o fcial

awards ceremony.

Good Sportsevolve sports

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In April, a group rom the Mechanical Engineeringclass o 1960/1963, the frst on the site, cameReunited in Coventry

back to campus to celebrate the 50th anniversary otheir graduation! Five o the original class and their wives

assembled or a walk down memory laneand a tour o the new buildings on campusand what is now the George Eliot building,to them just B block, their home or threeyears. Following this, they celebrated andreminisced over tea and cake. Another

our, including two in Australia, were keptin ormed o the visit, making nine o thenineteen in the 1963 photo, and theyrehot on the tracks o the others.

John Andrews remembers the earlydays o the then brand new LanchesterCollege well: From our windows in theblock acing the cathedral we saw mosto the structure above ground being built,including the hanging o St Michael andthe Devil, which caused quite a stir!

evolve events

A s an alumnus o this institution, our very own MichaelMogan, Head o Fundraising and Alumni Services,invited his ellow alumni rom the Business Studies class o1991 or a reunion in early May. The group got together on

campus to catch-up, reminisce and hear about the latestdevelopments at Coventry, be ore heading on a tour ocampus and the new Engineering and Computing building.

The a ternoon concluded at the Riley Lounge with acelebration and walk down memory lane much aided bythe 1991 yearbook and a good time was had by all.

BABS Reunion

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evolve international events


Shanghai event breaks alumni records

T he Alumni Team, AcademicPartnership Unit and InternationalO fce recently held the biggest overseasalumni event in Shanghai, Chinainvolving more than 125 graduates, VIPsand guests. Graduates rom the pastthirty years attended the event in Apriland recalled their avourite memories otheir time at Coventry University.

The University was well representedin Shanghai, with colleagues romeach o the our aculties as well as theGraduate Centre, Academic PartnershipUnit and the International O fce.

The aim o the event was tocelebrate the successes o our ormerstudents and to learn about theircareer progress and uture plans. The

event was also used as a plat orm toshowcase the best o the University,not just to graduates but also to invitedguests rom the felds o education,commerce and the arts.

Representatives rom both Chineseand British educational organisations,senior industrialists and governmento fcials also joined in with thecelebrations. President Zhao romShandong Normal University, whoreceived his PhD in 1993, joined awhole host o alumni to celebrate theirconnections with Coventry University.

The event was divided into twosessions. The frst session was anin ormal networking event which startedwith High Tea and was ollowed by a

series o speeches. The speakers includedDr David Pilsbury,Pro-Vice-Chancellor

or InternationalDevelopment,Coventry University,Daphne Zhou, Directoro Exams, British

Council Shanghai and representativeso the Coventry University AlumniCommunity in China.

The second session was an eveningmeal served on the 52nd Floor o theRitz-Carlton Hotel. The panoramicviews over the Shanghai skylinewere a talking point at the event andreminiscences o Coventry Universitycontinued long into the night.

Academic Partnership Manager,Judy Finlay said: Attendance at thisevent was the highest weve ever seen

or an overseas alumni event. Therewas a great mix o people and therewas so much ondness and happymemories o Coventry University. Itwas also great to hear how many oour alumni have secured high levelcareers ollowing their graduation.

To join FOCUS on China, visithttp://weibo.com/coventryalumni.The next Alumni Event will be heldin Beijing in late 2013/early 2014.To register your interest, [email protected]

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evolve international events

New alumni president welcomed in Hong Kong

A lumni in Hong Kong gatheredtogether recently over cocktails tocelebrate the appointment o a new

Alumni Association President, PeterWong. The event was held at RedBar in Central, Hong Kong and wasattended by 30 alumni and guests.

The event was hosted by Directoro International Development Rob

Atkinson, Senior DevelopmentManager, Chris Smith, RegionalManager (East Asia) Sarah Jephcottand International O fcer, Rob Wilson.

The event was organised by the Alumni Relations O fce and theInternational O fce and was designedto engage more widely with our alumniand network with some o our mosthigh achieving alumni in Hong Kong.Sarah Jephcott said: As well asbeing a un social event we wanted togive alumni the opportunity to sharememories o Coventry and networkwith other pro essionals in HongKong. The atmosphere was very livelyand alumni had the opportunity to

speak with others who had studied inCoventry over several decades.

The new Alumni AssociationPresident plans to organise a calendaro similar events and smaller in ormalevents to maintain connectionsbetween alumni in Hong Kong.

To join the Hong Kong AlumniSociety, visit https://www.

acebook.com/groups/ cualumnihongkong/.

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President Zhao, ShangdongNormal University, speaking atthe Shanghai Alumni Event


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> your beneftsMake the most o your FOCUS membership by attendingevents, getting third party discounts and entering exclusivecompetitions. Visitwww.coventry.ac.uk/alumni or more

DiscountsFOCUS has arranged or allmembers to get discounts on use ul

services and un days out with leadingcompanies. A ull list o discountsis below. Just visitwww.coventry.ac.uk/alumni/benefts to fnd outhow to redeem your discounts.

University o ers Discounted library membership Discounted Sports Centre

membership Associate membership o the

Students Union

Careers advice and graduatevacancies

Leisure Up to 50% o top attractions

such as Alton Towers resort,Chessington World AdventuresResort, LEGOLANDWindsor,Madame Tussauds London, theDungeons, SEA LIFE centres &Sanctuaries, THORPE PARK andWarwick Castle

Up to 50% o green ees at OpenFairways

Discounted membership to theGourmet Society

Transport Savings on car and van hire with

Europcar Savings on membership with the

AA and RAC Discounts on airport parking with

Parking4Less

Holidays Discounted rates at the Ramada

Hotel Coventry Savings on holidays with

cottages4you

September

20 SeptemberPutting the local back intohouse buildingThe role o the local builders in delivering

new homes is vital to our economic growth, the creation o jobs and the sourcing o local materials.Place: Coventry University, Engineering

and Computing Building, EC1.30Time: 09.00 17.00

October

16 OctoberTwo day Workshop on PassivhausPrinciples and MethodsPlace: Sustainable Building Futures,Engineering and Computing BuildingTime: 9.30 17.00

29 October

Occupational Therapy In ormation Day An introduction to Occupational Therapy: an opportunity to gain anoverview o the pro ession.Place: The Opal Assessment andDemonstration Centre, Coventry, CV1 4NATime: 12.30 16.30

November

16 NovemberOpen Day or Postgraduate andPart-time Place: Coventry UniversityTime: 10.00 14.00

18-22 NovemberGraduation Week Place: Coventry University

Evolve around the World Want to be in with a chance to win aCoventry University hoody? Then takepart in our evolve around the worldphoto competition!

Coventry University alumni live all

over the world and we want to seewhere you receive or take your copyo evolve , the alumni magazine!

To enter the competition, all you needto do is to send a picture o yourselwith your copy o evolve and a locallandmark or something iconic romyour country or area you live in. I youwish, tell us where the photo wastaken and what makes the locationspecial. We really hope you join in all alumni are welcome.

Send your entry to [email protected] your current contact details (and amessage i you wish).The competition isopen until 1st December 2013 .

Rules & In ormationEntrants must be CU Alumni. Enter be ore1/12/2013. Enter your current contact details(message optional). Entries may be used or printand digital publications. Contest will be judged byCU senior sta . Judges decision is fnal. No cashalternative will be o ered.

Competition


evolve benefts

Events To register or or more in ormationon any o the events, email

[email protected]

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BRILLIANT

BENEFITSFOR ALUMNICOVENTRY UNIVERSITYGRADUATES WHO CHOOSEFULL TIME POSTGRADUATESTUDY ARE ENTITLED TO ADISCOUNT OF 500 OFF THECOST OF THEIR COURSE .

THERE ARE ALSO A NUMBER OFSCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE.

Postgraduate study can opendoors, whether youre looking toimprove your career prospects,develop trans erable skills, gainthat vital competitive edge,pursue an academic career orexplore your strengths, interestsor aspirations.

To fnd out more aboutPostgraduate study atCoventry University includingour MBA programmes, get intouch today.

MBA Programmes new and improved or 2013Coventry Business School has made a number o changes to itssuite o MBA courses starting in September 2013:

MBA FinanceMBA ManagementMBA Global Development and Comparative LawMBA International BusinessMBA International Sport ManagementMBA Marketing

The programmes have a prestigious lecture series, and these haveincluded Julie White (Business Woman o the Year) and Dean Walton(Maskarade appeared on Dragons Den), increased opportunities

or internships, more feld trips (previously including ManchesterUnited FC, BMW Mini and JLR), new industry devised coursestructure and a pro essional mentor scheme, which will includemanagers rom industry, entrepreneurs and Faculty Pro essors.

For urther in ormation contact024 7765 4321 [email protected]

www.coventry.ac.uk/postgraduateOr visit one o our open dayswww.coventry.ac.uk/pgopendays


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Tipsy Clock

Champagne Flutes

The University

Remember your student days with pride and buy special souvenirsbranded with the University name or logo.

Its now even easier to choose from our selection of high quality goods by shopping online:

www.coventry.ac.uk/onlinestore

Business Card Case

Cuff Links

Satin Notepad and Mirror

Mini Cut Vase

Tankard

Round Crystal Paperweight

Gi t ShopGraduation Bear

evolve magazine - spring 2013

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