Robin

Turning an undergraduate degree into research 

Robin studied Psychology at USW before progressing on to a PhD. Robin’s doctorate is funded by the KESS project. 

"I loved my psychology degree and thought it was really well taught. I realised early on during my psychology course that I wanted to pursue a PhD, so I asked the faculty if they had any research assistant roles. I worked on a social psychology project for Dr Dan Bowers and co-wrote a research paper with Dr Phil Tyson. It was Phil Tyson who recommended the KESS PhD project to me, as he knew I was interested in the psychological elements of female reproductive health. I was happy to stay at USW because of its positive and supportive learning environment.  

My project involves evaluating an online symptom tracker for women with menopausal symptoms. I’m enrolled on a KESS PhD which means my project is supported by European Social Funds (ESF) through the Welsh Government and is a collaboration between USW and a company partner, www.healthandher.com. 

It has been nice to work with the wider company team, as well as external organisations. I hope that my research will demonstrate that simple, online interventions can be useful and cost effective for improving health outcomes for menopausal women. 

After my PhD, but I am keen to continue research within the field of female reproductive health, potentially within a post-doctorate position. Throughout my PhD, I have also worked as hourly paid lecturer so I am keen to continue this and see where it could take me."