Professor, School of Biochemistry
Mark is a thoughtful and creative educator who has continually developed innovative and engaging teaching approaches alongside a highly successful research career. […] But the thing that sets him apart […] is his delivery of interactive learning through in-person workshops and online material. […] To inspire students’ curiosity and creativity he frequently develops physical props so that students can get hands-on experience of difficult biological concepts.
Mark still finds time to work in the lab himself, and this enables him to provide some very exciting and unusual projects for students who show themselves capable of being trusted with the most fragile equipment: for example, one of his students recently conducted her project work on a single molecule molecular tweezer set-up that allowed her to monitor the activity of individual enzyme molecules with exquisite accuracy. This is exactly the sort of cutting-edge experimental experience that students hope for when coming to Bristol, and that will give them the skills needed to succeed at the very top level in scientific careers.
[Mark] always puts student experience first, and this year has spent a substantial period of time running mock interview session outside of the programme structure to help our year 4 students perform to their best in interviews for PhDs at the top institutions that many of them aspire to.
