Rob was Deputy Vice Chancellor at the University of Cumbria until 2024. In this role, in addition to collective executive responsibility for the leadership of the University, he had individual responsibility for a range of strategic initiatives and areas including learning and teaching, improving student outcomes, quality assurance and enhancement, portfolio design, employer and workforce development, International and Trans-National education developments and digital transformation.
During the Covid pandemic in 2020 he led the University’s response through the transition to online learning and assessment to ensure students could continue their education. This transition included the development and implementation of a revised set of academic regulations to ensure students were not disadvantaged, whilst maintaining academic standards.
Rob, has 30 years experience of working in the higher education sector and before joining Cumbria he held a range of senior positions at the University of Sunderland, where he was Dean of the Business and Law Faculty and latterly Pro Vice Chancellor (Students). As PVC he introduced a university wide student analytics system to identify and support students at risk of disengaging.
He is a Chartered Engineer with the Institute of Engineering & Technology and a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.