Bob Nichol appointed Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean at the University of Surrey

After an extensive international recruitment process, the University of Surrey has appointed Professor Bob Nichol as its new Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences.

Credit: Photographer: Helen Yates

Professor Nichol is currently the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research, Innovation and External Relations) and Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth. He will take up his new role at the University of Surrey on 1 January 2022.

With nearly 30 years of experience, Professor Nichol is one of the country's most cited astrophysicists and was instrumental in transforming Portsmouth's Institute for Cosmology and Gravitation into one of the best in the UK. In his last three years at Portsmouth, Professor Nichol has helped craft the university's new 2030 vision and 2025 strategy and help drive its multi-million-pound initiative to tackle single-use plastics on both a local and global level.

President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Surrey, Professor Max Lu, said:

"I am delighted to announce that Bob will be joining the University of Surrey in the New Year.

"We are thrilled to secure Professor Nichol’s service at Surrey, where his stellar academic track record and leadership experience will help us to advance our strategic goals and propel this strong faculty to even greater heights.”

Professor Nichol said:

"I am delighted to be joining the University of Surrey to take on a role that promises to be challenging and incredibly rewarding. I very much look forward to working with my new colleagues on ways to widen participation in STEM subjects, on super-charging Surrey’s innovation agenda and, most important of all, ensuring that the student experience is of the highest possible standard.

“This feels like the right opportunity at the right time for me.”