(Global) Associate Principal (Student Learning Experience)

Provide strategic leadership for the student learning experience across a global, multi-campus university, overseeing initiatives that enhance student success, satisfaction, retention and graduate outcomes. Chair the Learning and Teaching Academic Operations Committee and lead cross-institutional collaboration to deliver educational priorities aligned with Strategy 2035.

(Global) Associate Executive Dean (Academic Quality), School of Business, Design and Social Sciences

Provide strategic leadership for academic quality, standards and governance across a global portfolio of approximately 90 programmes and 500+ courses delivered on campus, online and through transnational education and partnership provision. Chairs the School Studies Committee and leads quality assurance, accreditation, academic risk management and curriculum governance activities across the School.

Louise completed an MA (Hons) in Psychology at the University of St Andrews in 1998 and a PhD in Visual Perception at the University of Nottingham in 2002. She is a Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society.

Following completion of her PhD, Louise joined Columbia University, New York, as a post-doctoral researcher (2002-2004), where she investigated depth perception. During this period, she developed a growing interest in the neural mechanisms underlying visual information processing. She subsequently returned to the UK to take up a post-doctoral position at Newcastle University (2004-2007), where she used micro-iontophoresis to examine the role of the cholinergic system in visual attention within the primary visual cortex.

In 2007, Louise joined the University of Sunderland as a Senior Lecturer in Psychology and was promoted to Associate Head of the School of Psychology in 2015. She moved to Heriot-Watt University in 2018. In 2023, she was appointed Associate Executive Dean (Academic Quality) for the School of Business, Design and Social Sciences, and in 2026 was appointed Associate Principal for Student Learning Experience.

Louise's current role is primarily focused on educational leadership and the enhancement of learning and teaching. In recognition of her leadership in higher education, she was awarded Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy in 2018. Louise’s expertise in academic quality is recognised internationally through her appointment as International Reviewer for the National Quality Assurance Agency for Education, Uzbekistan (2026).

Her current research interests focus on understanding how visual experiences contribute to the restorative potential of different environments, alongside investigating the processing of emotional information from facial expressions.