Professor Rebecca Lingwood was born in London, educated through the state system and went on to an undergraduate degree in Engineering and then a PhD at the University of Cambridge. Rebecca has two decades of experience in Higher Education senior leadership with a deep commitment to widening opportunities and social mobility. From her own background (under-represented in HE), she knows how transformational higher education and an inclusive research culture can be. She is a member of the Board of the Institute of Educational & Social Equity and has been a longstanding Trustee (and now academic assessor) for the Daphne Jackson Trust, supporting returners to research careers following a career break. Rebecca has a wealth of senior leadership experience, including strategy development and implementation, change management, internal and external (in the UK, Sweden and Norway) strategic reviews, and extensive governance, board, committee and trustee experience.
Rebecca is an internationally recognized research leader and professor of fluid dynamics. Her research activities are based at the Royal Institute of Technology KTH (Stockholm, Sweden), where she is also an Affiliated Professor. Rebecca has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng), where she takes an active role, sitting on multiple committees. She acts in a similar capacity for the Royal Society and Research Councils. She has been a STEM champion throughout her career.
Between 2018 and 2022, Rebecca was Provost of Brunel University London responsible for academic planning and budgetary matters, and the leadership and delivery of all the university’s academic activities (including: research; education; student experience; international and academic partnerships; civic, public and policy engagement; the three Colleges of academic departments; five university-wide Research Institutes; a research excellence centre; Brunel Public Policy; and academic leadership of equality, diversity and inclusion), while also deputizing for the Vice-Chancellor. Rebecca led the development and implementation of the 2030 research strategy. Prior to Brunel, she was Vice-Principal (Student Experience, Teaching & Learning) at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). At both QMUL and Brunel, Rebecca led major university-wide student experience and educational change programmes to improve outcomes during and beyond university for students and graduates. She also led the universities’ TEF submission and sat on the OfS TEF Advisory Group representing UUK. Earlier in her career she led continuing education at the University of Cambridge and prior to that she led continuing professional development at the University of Oxford; widening the ambit of these universities to those who would not otherwise have had the opportunity to study there. During her time in Cambridge, she was elected (by university staff) as a member of the University of Cambridge Council (governing body), and she held an extensive portfolio of university-wide responsibilities as a Council member and senior member of the University.
Rebecca has extensive experience working with industry and business in research and education, as well as with secondary schools and further education institutions. Across her various roles, she has co-led the establishment of two Institutes of Technology, co-founded a University Technical College, introduced degree apprenticeship programmes, and portfolios of fully online degree programmes.