Philip Cox is smiling in front of a white background
Philip Cox is smiling in front of a white background

Meet Professor Philip Cox, new Head of the School of Computing and Engineering (SCE)

Intro

Professor Philip Cox joined the University of West London as Head of the School of Computing and Engineering (SCE) at the beginning of March 2023.

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Commenting on how pleased he is to join UWL, Philip said:

I am impressed by how well UWL is performing in university guides and student surveys as this is such a strong indicator of student satisfaction."

Philip sees UWL’s strength as its diverse group of students who are engaged and not afraid to speak up and say what they want.

“I went to the library last week and I couldn't find a seat,” he explains. “Every little corner was taken up with a group of students working.

You walk through the Heart space and the hospitality students are there. Someone runs past you with a double bass and then you hear students talking politics over coffee. It is this mix that makes the place special.”

Being ranked 23rd by the Guardian Good University Guide is impressive, he says:

That recognises the ‘heavy lifting’ part of the job, which is ensuring students are being taught well — I'm a strong believer that if you teach well, you'll get the metrics coming back at you.”

Philip is keen to build on the high quality of teaching at SCE by strengthening its research and enterprise partnership strands.

“We have a great team, and I want to get everyone interested in research in all its forms,” he explains. “People need to feel supported in pursuing research, knowledge exchange or simply trying something new, as these activities feed back into keeping our teaching up to date.”

The SCE’s subject areas are at the forefront of current industrial and research agendas.

“It's a great time to be at this school, things are moving very fast - particularly in computing, with everything from artificial intelligence to cyber security,” Philip adds. “And engineering is at the heart of problem solving to drive forward sustainability initiatives.”

He wants his staff to meet regularly and exchange ideas.

“You never know where the next big thing could come from,” he enthuses, adding that he’s keen to get people thinking in a cross-disciplinary way with the computer people talking to the physical engineers.

“The idea of the single subject academic is long dead,” he says.

You can't stay in your room and hope that the world will knock on your door. You need to get out there, see what’s happening, listen to everyone and get involved.”

For students, his message is to seize the opportunity university represents for them personally and professionally.

“You'll never get a better chance to understand why you want to follow a particular career,” he says. “It should be the thing that sets your mind alive as to what you can achieve.”

Outside of work, Philip admits that walking and climbing, whether it be hills in the Lake District, mountains in Snowdonia or climbing walls in Acton, is his favourite way to decompress. “You really have to focus and switch off from everything else,” he says. “If not, it can be dangerous.”

On Tuesday 2 May, the concrete and structures lab is holding a special open event for staff and students called ‘Sustainability: Is concrete as bad as it is made out to be?’.

“The idea is let people know what we are doing regarding concrete and look at the sustainability of its use and manufacture,” Philip explains.

Welcome Philip!

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