Shortly after graduating, I decided to go straight back to university to complete a conversion MSc programme in psychology at the University of East London.

After a brief foray in the world of work (in Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services and an NHS community cancer team), I returned to university not once, but twice more – first at the University of Surrey for my MSc in health psychology, and finally to the Norwich Medical School at the University of East Anglia for my PhD. For my PhD, I used a process of realist evaluation and thematic analysis to study organisational change within NHS hospitals, exploring how the implementation of new surgical care pathways can be improved.

Since then, I’ve dipped my feet in the world of academia both in a teaching capacity and as a research associate (at the University of East Anglia, but more recently at King’s College London). I’m interested in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of higher education students, and the use of technology-enhanced learning practices in colleges and universities.

Outside of research and teaching, I continue to be a student – old habits die hard! My early love of existentialism and phenomenology still holds strong, and I’m currently completing my professional training to be a person-centred counsellor. I am also the editor of the QMiP Bulletin.

I was fortunate to meet Johanna at a BPS Qualitative Methods in Psychology section conference. We both had blue hair back then and I knew early on that we’d somehow stay in touch. I’m thrilled that she invited me to be a part of the PGPR family.

You can check out my Google Scholar profile here.

My PhD focuses on language used to account for alcohol use, using critical discursive psychology and discursive psychology. I have also worked in a mental health hospital as a support worker, as a research assistant on various qualitative projects, and I am currently a qualitative researcher at Middlesex University on the process evaluation for an NHS mental health trial.

I am genuinely passionate about qualitative research, which is perhaps one of the nerdiest things I've ever written, but I stand by it. In particular, I tend to use discursive and conversation analytic methods, but also dabble in thematic analysis. Qualitative research can be messy and I enjoy making sense out of that complexity. There's nothing better than that 'eureka' moment when it all suddenly clicks! Qualitative research is incredibly rich and nuanced, but it can be difficult knowing how to frame your intricate analysis. We all need a helping hand sometimes in getting the best out of our work and I really enjoy being involved in that process.

Outside of research, I edited the PsyPAG Quarterly Journal for two years and I have been an Editor for the QMiP Bulletin since 2016 (where I met the wonderful Johanna and Astrid). Through these roles I am used to working with postgraduate students writing their first publication. I was that student not long ago and vividly remember how daunting the publication process can be. I believe it's important to give encouraging feedback that doesn't make you physically cringe and hide away for a week. I take great care to give constructive feedback which makes your work the best it can be, but also letting you know what already works!

Aside from academia, you can usually find me doing a pub quiz, snaffling too much pizza, or climbing a rock, not at the same time.

The University of Derby’s online psychology programme had just been launched and I was one of the first graduates. I went on to complete my PhD in health psychology and decided to stay in academia to research and teach. I teach for various online programmes in the UK as well as publishing IPA research with a team I originally met at Derby.

Learning academic writing during my psychology studies (somehow engineers never seemed to worry too much about writing style!) helped me understand the mechanics and style involved in academic writing. Early on in my teaching, I started giving ‘hints and tips’ to my students to help them develop their writing style because I strongly feel that the way we present our ideas is often as important as the ideas themselves.

I’m always intrigued by the puzzle of making a piece of writing ‘work’, both in style and content. I enjoy the collaborative aspect of working with someone to see their ideas develop, to provide a few nudges on the way, and to enjoy that ‘a-ha’ moment of insight.

Check out my Google Scholar profile here.

I also supervise postgraduate research as well as delivering training and consultancy in qualitative methods, behaviour change, intervention evaluation, communication skills and motivational interviewing.

I conduct research in a variety of fields including women’s health, occupational wellbeing, body esteem, weight stigma, nature connection, postgraduate supervision experiences and positive psychology. I specialise in qualitative interviewing skills and IPA, and I enjoy teaching people how to develop their projects. I have co-created and frequently lead successful workshops for postgraduate students to support their confidence in IPA. I’ve also written papers about the hermeneutic process involved in IPA. I’m passionate about teaching and learning, and I aim to support my students to the best of my abilities. My mantra is not necessarily to lead the way in my field but to equip my students to do that in theirs.

Exploring the new phenomenon of free time, I rediscovered my love of writing. I regularly contribute and ghostwrite articles on inclusion and visibility for a variety of publications, including The Guardian and The Times Educational Supplement, as well as producing songs, scripts and educational material for schools.

Through a series of convoluted events, I now work with several universities, providing proof-reading services to postgraduate students, and joined PGPR in 2020. It turns out that ploughing through GCSE MFL essays helps hone your beady ‘translated syntax’ eyes, and I have a particular interest in helping those with English as a second language. The diversity of topics covered in theses and papers is truly fascinating, and I find it exhilarating to learn through reading a client’s passionate and dedicated research.

Where did I come from? Well, in 2007, I graduated from the University of Sheffield with a BA in psychology and philosophy. This sparked my interest in research (particularly psychology) and planted my long-held belief that APA is the greatest referencing system ever created (my friends and family don’t seem as interested in this as me).

After a few administrative jobs straight after university, I took a postgraduate course in primary care mental health practice and spent a number of years in Manchester and London working in primary care mental health for the NHS.

After that, I decided to change direction. I got a job in student support at the University of Roehampton before becoming certified to teach English as a second language. With my English certificate in hand, I moved to Seoul, South Korea.

During my three years in Seoul, I had a brief intermission where I worked in an extremely strange pub in rural Australia before deciding to plan my freelance life. I put my eagle-eyed pedantry to good use by getting a freelance proof-reading job and set myself up to teach online. I left Korea to travel around a bunch of countries teaching on the internet. I had a fine suntan for a short while…

Last year, I moved back to the fine city of Sheffield, began working for the lovely Johanna at PGPR, and started my freelance copywriting business, which you can check out here. Now I am free to be a word nerd all day long!

My doctoral thesis involved a phenomenological exploration of aesthetic encounters. I am interested in the evolution of IPA from its adoption in health psychology to its relevance for an ever-widening range of subjects and disciplines.

I have a BSc in psychology and a master’s degree in psychological research methods, the latter of which gave me a particular eye for research design and methodology.

Like everyone at PGPR, I am passionate about good qualitative research. I believe that, regardless of how experienced a person is, collaboration is a vital part of the process. It is incredibly rewarding to be that extra pair of eyes on a piece of work and help it really shine.

One of my favourite things about working with PGPR is that proof-reading involves more than just correcting the typos. Each project is unique and we work hard to maintain each client’s individual vision. We care about what you want to say as well as how you say it.

Away from academia, I can usually be found on the treadmill, with my nose in a book or on an adventure inside a video game.

Having spent a few of my earliest working years in the charity sector and a PR agency (London, Buckinghamshire, Cardiff), I sidled into marketing – mostly just to see what all the fuss was about. I am driven by an insatiable curiosity for just about everything and, as almost every sector needs marketers, it seemed a cool thing to get into; I could learn a set of skills, get experience, and then work wherever I fancied, finding out about stuff. Any stuff. All the stuff.

That line of thinking led me on a highly enjoyable career path through higher education, corporate and commercial law, the NHS and NGOs. My main areas these days are editing and proofing, writing, data analytics and reporting, community engagement, and SEO, which massively pleases the writer, knowledge-hunter, experimenter and data-and-spreadsheet nerds in me.

I disappeared to Spain, Central America and Mexico for a year or two and began freelancing as an academic proofer, through which I met Johanna. I’ve been working with PGPR for around a year now and really just couldn’t ask for a better team – or for more interesting work or more lovely clients. Getting to help somebody with the enormous step of achieving their PhD would have been enough for me – but that fact that I also get to learn so much from clients’ work along the way is the icing on the cake!

I assisted in various quantitative research projects, primarily working with econometric and statistical models. Working in research led me to the role of proofreader and editor for research papers, prior to their submission for publication. I also proofread postgraduate dissertations in a variety of business related subjects.

Despite my passion for statistical investigation, I left tertiary education to teach English in South Korea and pursue my love of travel. While backpacking through Asia, I started teaching English online, and developing course content and assessments for vocational education training.

During my travels, I met my husband and we now live in the United States of America with our beautiful daughter, ten chickens, and a cheeky English Labrador. When we aren’t exploring the mountains and trails or paddling along the river, I teach English and Economics online, and work as a proofreader for PGPR.