News in brief
LUBS ranked in world’s top 50
Leeds University Business School (LUBS) is now ranked in the
world’s top 50 business schools, according to the Financial Times
2008 global survey of MBAs (Masters in business administration).
LUBS has risen to 48th place in the global survey, up from 93rd place last year, and is now ranked 7th in the world for teaching in international business.
The survey rankings are based on the earning power and career progress of alumni in 16 different countries who graduated from a full-time MBA in 2004. At Leeds, the average salary for the class of 2004 has risen by 110% and is now worth US$104,165.
How to survive your PhD
Getting Your PhD: A Practical Insider’s Guide is full of advice on
undertaking doctoral research in the social sciences and humanities.
The study guide, published by Sage Publications, is co-authored by Leeds sociology lecturer Dr Teela Sanders and Dr Harriet Churchill.
Using real-life case studies, it examines the personal, emotional, and organisational demands of independent study. It also offers practical tips for dealing with issues like writing and publishing; networking; and supportive relationships.
Honours
Professor Alistair Hall (Leeds Institute of Genetics , Health and Therapeutics) has received Scientific American 's prestigious award for ‘research leader of the year', shared with colleagues from 50 British research groups. Professor Hall is joint principal investigator of the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium, which has scanned over 19,000 DNA samples to identify ‘genetic signposts' for diseases such as bipolar disorder, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes.
A widening participation project that provided mentoring for young people to encourage them to keep studying, run by Sharon Trotter and Anastasia Karanika (Access and Community Engagement), was one of four ‘exceptional winners' at the Higher Education Volunteering Awards 2007. A second project run by the pair offered language support to asylum seekers.
Dr Jim Hinton ( School of Physics and Astronomy) has been awarded the Institute of Physics (IOP)'s nuclear and particle physics division's prize for his contribution to the field of high energy astrophysics. In particular, Dr Hinton played a major role in developing the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) gamma-ray telescope.
The University of Leeds is one the UK 's first universities to reach the gold standard in the Tidy Business Standards. Leeds City Council presented Estate Services with the award in December, which recognises our efforts in minimising waste and recycling.
Professor Tom McLeish ( School of Physics and Astronomy) has been elected as a fellow of the American Physical Society for his contributions to the theory of dynamics and rheology of entangled polymers. Fewer than 0.5% of the society's 46,000 members are elected to become fellows each year.
In the New Year Honours, genetics expert Professor Alex Markham (Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine), the former chief executive of Cancer Research UK , was awarded a knighthood for his services to medicine.
Theatre director and SDDU tutor Jane Oakshott-Rastall was made an MBE for services to community drama. She led a street revival of York 's medieval wagon-top ‘mystery plays' – the first time they had been seen in England for over 400 years.
A device that can predict the onset of labour in pregnant women – up to two weeks in advance – by measuring electrical signals in the womb won first prize for innovation and technology in the Times Higher Educational Supplement Awards. The ‘Polo' device was developed by Leeds obstetricians Professor James Walker (Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine) and Dr Nigel Simpson ( School of Medicine ).