Our Year 2018
Welcome to Our Year 2018, Abertay University’s annual look at campus life over the last calendar year. It has been another good year for the University as we have continued to invest in our academic programmes and in student services, and we have had particular success in our interactions with industry in the area of the digital economy. Highlights have included: • Highest-ranking modern university in Scotland (Guardian Good University Guide 2019) •
Leading on major videogames and cybersecurity research and development partnerships worth more than £20m
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Ranked number one in Europe for undergraduate videogames courses – for the fourth consecutive year (Princeton Review)
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First students graduated from our innovative Masters partnership with China-based Perfect World Entertainment
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An agreement with Santander Universities supporting student mobility and entrepreneurship
• The opening of V&A Dundee, of which Abertay is a founding partner As Principal, I am proud of what our students, staff and alumni have achieved in their academic endeavours and in their contribution to the City of Dundee, and to society globally. I look forward to more great things in 2019. I hope you enjoy Our Year 2018.
Professor Nigel Seaton Principal and Vice-Chancellor
Innovation for the Digital Age
Major projects bringing videogames and cybersecurity hubs to Dundee Abertay secured major funding for two separate research and development projects with the potential to boost both the videogames and cybersecurity industries. The £9m Innovation for Games and Media Enterprise (InGAME) project will establish a dedicated research and development centre for the Dundee videogames cluster, driving product, service and experience innovation across the industry. Run in partnership with the University of Dundee and the University of St Andrews, the project is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s (AHRC) Creative Industries Clusters programme and the Scottish Funding Council, with games industry partners including 4J Studios, All4Games, BBC, Beano Studios, Biome Collective, DeltaDNA, Microsoft, Outplay Entertainment and Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe. Business and cluster development will be supported by Creative Dundee, Creative Scotland, Elevator UK, Interface, Dundee City Council, Scottish Enterprise, TIGA, UK Games Fund and UK Interactive Entertainment and V&A Dundee. Tapping into Tay Cities Deal investment, Abertay will also lead a new £11.7m project to create a cybersecurity research and development centre in Dundee. The ‘cyberQuarter’ project will be based on campus and run with the Scottish Business Resilience Centre as core partners, offering a cluster of academic and industry activity as well as expertise in applied research. Local businesses and public bodies will be able to access a range of public-sector support through the centre, which will link to the University’s Division of Cybersecurity and Dundee’s digital industries.
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Veterans’ memories brought to life Videogames researchers brought the experiences of veterans to life in a virtual reality partnership with Poppyscotland. Dr Iain Donald and research assistant Emma Houghton of the School of Design and Informatics produced simulation, Their Memory, which sees players explore the real-life memories of those who served their country across various major conflicts. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Their Memory was supported by graduate games studio Pocket Sized Hands and Dundee-based Ruffian Games, with the current version available on the Oculus Go platform.
Tayyaba enjoys stellar year PhD student Tayyaba Nafees had an incredible year, being named a Royal Society of Edinburgh Enterprise Fellow while picking up a string of awards and accolades. Her cybersecurity business, CyberShell Solutions, is being developed to help the software industry spot vulnerabilities in the early design stages, using hi-tech cybersecurity information and analysis to avoid costly and damaging data breaches further down the line. In October, she scooped a prize at the Scottish Women in Technology Awards, followed by further success at the Scottish Cyber Awards in November. Tayyaba also presented on cybersecurity and resilience to MSPs and policymakers at Parliament and made the finals of the Converge Challenge enterprise competition.
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Inspirational Students
On the hunt for cold case clues Students scoured press articles from down the decades in May as part of a live Police Scotland probe into nearly 30 cold cases across the country. The project, part of National Missing Persons Week, saw a team of more than 20 Psychology, Criminology and Forensic Sciences students focus on Scottish newspaper cuttings relating to cases of unidentified bodies and body parts, which have never been matched to a missing person or victim. Dr Penny Woolnough led the project. She said: “This was a fantastic operation for our students to be involved in, not only because it gives them industry experience but there’s also a real chance they may turn up some useful information.”
Sweet reaction to chocolate conference MSc Food and Drink Innovation student Jamie Hutcheon brought some serious flavour to Abertay in the sweet shape of the Scottish Chocolatier Network conference. The former Dragon’s Den contestant pulled together chocolate lovers from across the country for the event in February, which included a series of presentations from Abertay academics. Jamie, who runs Aberdeen-based chocolate producer Cocoa Ooze, also coordinated talks from a range of industry experts, including representatives of Scotland Food and Drink and the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society. The conference included a tour of Abertay’s £3.5m science labs, which house the only industry-standard Consumer Testing Lab in any Scottish university.
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Students thunder to Dare Academy title Student team Thunder Lime was declared winner of Abertay’s Dare Academy videogames design competition during a hotly-contested final in Birmingham. A panel of industry judges ran the rule over the six finalists at the EGX games conference in Birmingham, with the winners scooping a funded trip to the massive Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Dare Academy sees students challenged to devise, conceptualise and create games over a six-month period, with previous finalists enjoying both commercial success and critical acclaim.
IGG showcased at Holyrood reception Students pitched real-life business solutions to companies including Heineken, Lloyds and BT as part of an Innovation for Global Growth challenge that was showcased at Holyrood. Both multi-national and local firms took part in the event, which tasks students from Abertay’s Dundee Business School with reacting to client briefs and developing solutions. The programme was showcased at a Universities Scotland parliamentary reception highlighting how the higher education sector can best engage with industry.
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Research with Real World Impact
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Study finds seals harmed by toxic chemicals A study from Dr Kimberley Bennett found baby grey seals in the North Sea are at risk from toxic chemicals present in their mothers’ milk. Conducted on the Isle of May, off the coast of Fife, the research showed contaminants from paints, sealants, industrial lubricants, electrical transformers and pesticides are entering the marine food chain and impacting blubber production in pups. Dr Bennett said: “This new research shows that blubber, which is a vital for seals and whales, could be vulnerable to harmful effects at levels much lower than previously thought.”
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edge Transfer Partnership
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Sprint training combats age-related illnesses Research found people aged over 60 can reduce the risk of age related illnesses such as dementia through just two minutes of exercise per week. The study from Dr John Babraj saw people aged between 60 and 75 take part in two sprint interval training sessions per week for 10 weeks. The group all had hypertension, a risk factor in dementia, and achieved a total of one minute of high intensity exercise in each session. By the end of the study, their blood pressure had fallen to normal, healthy levels, without any change in medication or diet.
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Celebrating Achievement and Partnership
Students tap into Santander network A new partnership with the Santander Universities network was signed in February with the aim of supporting student entrepreneurship and academic and industrial placements. The University set up the Santander Opportunities Fund, offering funding for work placements, conference travel and visits to partner universities. Students Stefan Cameron and Euan Lumsden applied for funding and placements in Bangladesh, which were secured thanks to Abertay alum Abdur Rouf, chair of finance giant Mutual Trust Bank.
Athena SWAN equality award Double success was achieved in the Athena SWAN Charter, recognising work to advance gender equality. The University as a whole was awarded the Athena SWAN Bronze Award for the second time, with the institution’sSchool of Science, Engineering and Technology also successful in achieving the same accolade. Dr Rebecca Wade, Athena SWAN committee member said: “This award is recognition of our commitment to working towards a better workplace where students and staff benefit from a supportive culture.”
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National Teaching Fellowship prestige The Head of the School of Social and Health Sciences, Andrea Cameron, was awarded a prestigious National Teaching Fellowship by Advance HE. The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) celebrates and recognises individuals who have made an outstanding impact on student outcomes and the teaching profession in higher education. Andrea was among just five new National Teaching Fellows announced in Scotland in August, recognising her work in transforming teaching and learning.
SEZ customer service excellence Abertay’s Support Enquiry Zone (SEZ) became the first University department to achieve Customer Service Excellence accreditation from the Cabinet Office. Following an external assessment, including interviews with students and colleagues, SEZ was recognised for service delivery, timeliness and accuracy of information, professionalism and staff attitude. There was particular recognition for developing customer insight and understanding the user experience.
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Inspiring Ambition through the Arts
Outreach project makes instant impact Fostering creativity, community and collaboration across Dundee, the Weave by Abertay project launched in February and has already hosted more than 30 events as part of a vibrant programme. A key player in staging both the Abertay Digital Graduate Show and NEoN Digital Arts Festival, the Weave team also organised talks, workshops, exhibitions and performances with Abertay students, staff and cultural partners across Dundee – a Unesco City of Design. Weave curator and computer arts lecturer Clare Brennan said: “In 2018 we saw over 10,000 people engage with our programme and we plan to build on this and shine a spotlight on creative talent, locally and globally.” As well as capturing the public imagination, Weave projects also made the local, Scottish and national press and received coverage in specialist arts publications. Speakers taking part in their popular Platform public engagement series included Pixar technical director Michael Frederickson, games designers Brie Code and Florian Veltman, legendary science fiction illustrator John Harris and Dundee-based digital artists Biome Collective. Themes explored throughout the year included design, mental health, creativity and widening access to education.
30 EVENTS, 10,000 ATTENDEES, 1000 NEW
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V&A Dundee welcomes the world V&A Dundee opened its doors in September marking an historic moment in the city’s renaissance. As Scotland’s first design museum, V&A Dundee investigates the international importance of design and presents Scotland’s outstanding design achievements. A founding partner of the museum, Abertay has supported the development of the iconic £80.1m site from an early stage, with videogame Killbox – co-created by our Professor of Games and Tactical Media, Joseph DeLappe and games group Biome Collective - among the items on show in the spectacular Scottish Design Galleries. During the 3D Festival to launch the museum, Abertay ran a series of public workshops showcasing the creative projects of our games and arts students.
Generation ZX (X) A unique digital art project catalogued the memories and experiences of the army of Dundee women behind the legendary ZX Spectrum computer built at the former Timex factory. Researcher Mona Bozdog coordinated a major public event, Generation ZX(X), featuring hours of interviews with former factory workers, geo-tagged around the city’s Camperdown Park. A mini games festival and digital projection were also included in the project, run in partnership with Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, National Theatre of Scotland, the Scottish Graduate School of Arts and Humanities and the Scottish Funding Council.
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Engaging Events and Conferences A wide array of events and conferences were held over 2018 attracting delegates from all over the world. In March, around 200 delegates from countries including Australia, Ireland, Tajikistan, Nigeria and Norway attended the 1st International Conference on Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy. A new partnership with the Fife Flyers ice hockey team was then unveiled in August, through a special sports science analysis session and media day. The same month Abertay alum Suzanne Scott held a ‘Meet the Artist’ day as part of the Maggie’s Penguin Parade art trail, sponsored by the University. Dr Alastair Robertson led the Learning Through Co-Design: Teaching and Learning Enhancement Conference in October, exploring the roles of design, creativity and play in higher education teaching and learning. Some of the biggest names in videogames then arrived for the Ukie (UK Interactive Entertainment) Student Conference, also in October - a first trip to Scotland for the event. GuildHE hosted its Annual Conference and Annual General Meeting at Abertay in November, looking at the role of UK higher education in driving local, regional, national and international transformation. Keynote speakers included Abertay Honorary Graduate Lord Watson, who is Labour education spokesperson in the House of Lords, and Nicola Dandridge, CEO of the Office for Students. Over the course of the year, professorial lectures were delivered by Professor of Games and Tactical Media Joseph DeLappe and Professor of Cybersecurity Karen Renaud, while Abertay also hosted the Dundee Public Data Jam and a cookery demo from celebrity chef Nick Nairn. The international Game-On conference came to the University in September, and in December the Christmas Cyber Lectures roadshow made its annual pit stop at Abertay.
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| Maggie’s Penguin Parade | Data Jam | Nick Nairn Annual Review
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Inspiring the Next Generation
School pupils and college students from all over Scotland took part in a host of engagement activities over the course of 2018. From an Innovation Lab session with Sir Tom Hunter to forensic analysis of shoes for British Science Week, our academics led a series of classes, workshops and lectures designed to inspire young people into higher education. Abertay also hosted the annual Go4SET science competition, welcomed Dundee United Youth Team for sports science testing and organised an event that saw hundreds of modern studies pupils pack into the main lecture theatre for the Division of Sociology’s annual Brexit debate. Director of Recruitment Lesley Balfour said: “Widening access to higher education is one of our key priorities and there’s no better way to encourage young people to consider university than getting them in for a taste of what we do.”
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Pride in the Abertay Community
It was another year of success for Abertay alums, with games company Puny Astronaut - made up of recent graduates - receiving a six figure investment from Minecraft Console Edition developer 4J Studios. Food and Drink Innovation graduate Andrew Mackenzie of Verdant Gin also enjoyed a great year, winning approval to open a visitor centre at his distillery in Dundee and revealing plans for a gin school. Meanwhile, sports graduate Debbi McCulloch was appointed manager of the Spartans women’s football team and was also part of the commentary line-up for some of the Scotland women’s matches as they qualified for their first ever World Cup finals. Head of Alumni and Development Carol Ann Smith said: “2018 was another outstanding year for our amazing Abertay alumni family. “It’s wonderful to showcase the achievements of our alumni and to involve them so closely with Abertay and our students.” The Alumni and Development team also organised its biggest ever Tour de Tay cycle challenge, expanded its outreach work with support from the Nine Incorporated Trades of Dundee and created new PhD Studentships in partnership with Northwood Charitable Trust.
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Congrats to the Class of 2018! The class of 2018 graduated in style across Abertay’s traditional winter and summer ceremonies. Held at the Caird Hall in Dundee, Summer Graduation saw three honorary degrees awarded, including leader of the first wholly Scottish expedition to the North and South Poles, Craig Mathieson; former president of the Institution of Civil Engineers Dr Jean Venables; and Professor of Mycology Lynne Boddy of Cardiff University. Winter Graduation in November saw an honorary degree conferred upon human rights campaigner and LGBTQ+ activist Peter Tatchell. The first cohort of students from Abertay’s Masters partnership with Perfect World Entertainment graduated in 2018, returning to China to take up jobs in the booming videogames industry. Across both ceremonies, around 1,000 graduates celebrated their achievements, receiving degrees from all of the University’s academic schools.
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Never compromise on your aspirations, dreams don’t happen if you dilute them. Craig Mathieson
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