The Education-Focused Academic Podcast

In this final episode of Season One, co-hosts Dr Rushana Khusainova and Professor Sally Everett reflect on what they have learned from the podcast, their book, and the diverse academic journeys shared by contributors from around the world. We explore what these stories tell us about the evolving education-focused pathway and some of the bigger challenges facing higher education, including generati...

In this episode, we are joined by  Dr Michael Baird , Associate Professor and Director of Learning and Teaching at Curtin University, Australia, to explore what the education-focused academic pathway looks like from an Australian perspective. We chat about Michael's career journey into academia and examine how teaching-focused careers are structured, recognised and promoted in Australia. We di...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Zach Thompson from the University of Tennessee, USA, to explore the education-focused academic pathway in the United States and the growing role of the Professor of Practice career route. Zach shares his unconventional journey from the charity sector and entrepreneurship into academia, reflecting on how industry experience can enrich teaching, curriculum design...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Samir Nusseibeh from KU Leuven, Belgium, to explore academic careers, teaching and professional development in the Belgian higher education context. Samir reflects on his journey from laboratory research in pharmacology into teaching-focused roles, before moving into talent development and technology transfer at KU Leuven. In this conversation we discuss  cultu...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Mark Speakman from the Autonomous University of Guerrero, Mexico, to explore academic careers and higher education in the Mexican context.   Mark reflects on his unconventional journey into academia, from teaching English in Mexico to completing his university education later in life and building an academic career in tourism and sustainable development.   A ce...

In this episode, we are joined by Professor Nicki Newman, Professor of Business Education (Marketing) and Deputy Dean (Resources) at Birmingham Business School, to discuss career progression, teaching innovation and the idea of “upshifting” in education-focused academic careers. The conversation traces Nicki’s journey from banking into academia, and explores how her love of teaching, curiosity and...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Rachael Lamb from the University of Bristol Business School to discuss how professional networks can shape an education-focused academic career. The conversation explores Rachael’s journey from industry into academia and reflects on the challenges of changing careers mid-life, learning how universities work, and building confidence in a new professional environ...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Lloyd Fletcher, Associate Professor in Management at the University of Bristol Business School, to explore how industry experience can shape an education-focused academic career. The conversation traces Lloyd’s journey from physics and engineering, through telecommunications and consultancy, to academia. The episode highlights how real-life stories, examples, a...

In this episode, we are joined by Dr Chahna Gonsalves, Senior Lecturer in Marketing (Education) at King’s Business School, to explore how innovation, failure and unlearning shape education-focused academic careers.   The conversation traces Chahna’s journey into the education-focused pathway, from initially applying for research-track roles to discovering a strong commitment to teaching, pedagogic...

In this episode, we are joined by Professor Wayne Holland, Professor of Management Education and School Education Director at the University of Bristol Business School, to discuss how leadership roles can shape an education-focused academic career. The conversation explores Wayne’s journey from starting on a traditional academic pathway (research and education) in the early 1990s to becoming the f...

In this episode, we are joined by Professor Christine Rivers and Associate Professor Anna Holland from the University of Surrey to discuss how intention, strategy, and courage can shape an education-focused academic career.   The conversation explores their very different journeys into higher education, from industry, apprenticeships, and further education to academic leadership and professorship....

In this special International Women’s Day episode of the Education-Focused Academic Podcast, we celebrate the women who inspire, mentor, and uplift us in academia and beyond. We reflect on what empowerment means for women in higher education, share personal stories about the women who shaped our journeys, and discuss the role of mentoring, sponsorship, and supportive networks in helping women thri...

In this episode, we are joined by Professor James Norman, Professor of Sustainable Design at the University of Bath, an engineer whose career began in industry and who later moved into academia to use education as a way to impact engineering practice.  The conversation traces James’s unconventional journey from engineering and industry, through part-time teaching alongside professional practice, t...

In this episode, we are joined by a Professor Xue Zhou - Professor of AI in Business Education and one of the UK’s first Deans of AI to discuss how expertise, focus, and curiosity can shape an education-focused academic career. The conversation traces Professor Zhou’s journey from engineering and digital teaching tools like Top Hat, through widening participation and pedagogic research, to becomin...

In this episode, we are joined by Marios Kremantzis from the University of Bristol Business School to explore education-focused academic careers through the lens of scale, impact, and generative AI. Marios reflects on his journey from decision science into education-focused leadership, sharing insights on teaching large cohorts, designing fair assessments, supporting international students, and ma...

In this episode, Rushana turns from co-host to guest and talks about visibility and personal brand for career development. Together, we explore why many academics feel uneasy about becoming more visible, why personal branding is often misunderstood, and how education-focused colleagues can approach it in an authentic, and useful way. Drawing on her marketing background, Rushana shares how she bega...

In this episode, Professor Sally Everett turns from co-host to guest as we talk honestly about an inclusive  path to professorship and championing equity, diversity, and inclusion. Sally shares the personal and professional journey that led her into EDI work, from her own lived experiences to reinvigorating women’s networks, responding to disabled students’ allowance cuts, and getting involved wit...

Welcome to the first episode of  The Education-Focused Academic podcast ! Hosts  Dr Rushana Khusainova  and  Professor Sally Everett  open the series by exploring what it means to be an education-focused academic and why this career path deserves more visibility in higher education. In this conversation, we discuss: what “education-focused academic” means in practice why this role is timely and im...