Rumy Begum is a first-generation university student who completed a BSc in Biological Sciences, a Master’s in Higher Education, a PhD in Sports Nutrition and is now a Senior Lecturer in Nutrition and Exercise Science at the University of Westminster. Rumy actively carries out discipline-based research within the area of nutrition and health, working collaboratively and publishing in high-impact journals. She is an advocate of research-informed teaching and experiential learning and has combined these aspects successfully in modules to transform student thinking beyond the text in books.
Central to this is encouraging students to question aspects and guiding them understand and apply critical and holistic thinking. Furthermore, Rumy is engaged in pedagogic research with respect to student-staff partnership, career aspirations and diversity and inclusion. She champions student partnership at her institution and beyond, highlighting the importance of seeing partnership work as “true partnership”. She has recently contributed to a book chapter titled: I’ve Seen You (Fraser et al, 2020) within the book, The Power of Partnership, edited by Mercer-Mapstone and Abbot (2020).
This book is a celebration of the nuance and complexity of partnership work in higher education, highlighting its potential to transform lives and institutions. Rumy’s day to day academic practice centres around helping students from all backgrounds have a sense of belonging, working towards increasing students’ confidence and self-belief (self-efficacy) with a vision to establish an authentic learning space where learners from all backgrounds effortlessly feel like they belong.
In 2017, using her experiences as alumni co-ordinator, Rumy designed an innovative synoptic assessment, Professional Development Portfolio (PDP), for the students on the nutrition course. This portfolio weaves a thread through the course, slowly prompting students to build on their professional development while still studying, thus leaving the course with more than just a degree.
Recent work has seen Rumy lead on work developing a more inclusive curriculum in life sciences, producing a guidance document and designing an infographic to support busy colleagues capture the key details. This unique piece of work has been transformative in revalidation across the university and beyond.