Dear colleagues,  

It was great that so many of you could join yesterday's In Conversation with the President and share your questions, which were thoughtful and considered as always. Thank you again for your engagement as we work together to shape Imperial's future.

Imperial is entering the new academic year in a strong position. Special thanks to the many of you who have helped deliver such an excellent outcome in student recruitment and are working hard to prepare for our new student cohort.

Since we last came together, the new UK government has formed. We look forward to working with them to support their understanding of both the Higher Education sector and, of course, Imperial itself – not just as Britain’s leading STEMB university, but also as an important engine of growth for the UK.

A major focus during this academic year will be the implementation of our new strategy, Science for Humanity. Next month we will launch our new US hub in San Francisco, followed swiftly by our West Africa hub in Accra, Ghana. We will also make progress on our four new Schools of Convergence Science, the Institute of Extended Learning, and other aspects of the strategy.

Yesterday, we focused on one pivotal element – Imperial’s Class of 2030. Professor Peter Haynes (Vice-Provost Education and Student Experience) shared further details of this work. Our goal is that this cohort will be our most diverse, enterprising and talented to date. Peter discussed important aspects of the project such as how we can build on our inspiring and stretching research-rich curriculum to provide more interdisciplinary opportunities, including in AI and sustainability science, and more effective and less onerous assessment and feedback.

If you missed the event, you can watch the recording online. Thank you to our Consul, Professor Wisia Wedzicha, for chairing the Q&A. We will provide follow-ups on any key points from yesterday’s discussion in the next Staff Briefing on Friday 20 September.  

Our next In Conversation event will be on Wednesday 23 October, 10.30 - 11.30, with Provost Ian Walmsley. Before then, I hope many of you can join our next Professional Services Discussion event on Wednesday 9 October.

I hope you enjoy the new wave of energy that permeates every corner of our campus as we move into the new term, and I wish you all the best for the academic year ahead.

With best wishes,

Hugh

 

Professor Hugh Brady

President, Imperial College London