Three Aston University STEM pioneers shortlisted for Women in Tech Awards

Aug 5, 2021

2 min

Kate Sugden

• Three finalists from Aston University shortlisted for prestigious Women in Tech Awards

• Two academics are up for the award which will be announced in October

• A degree apprentice has also been nominated in the category



Three STEM pioneers from Aston University are celebrating after being shortlisted for the prestigious Midlands Women In Tech Awards.


Aston University’s Reham Badawy and Lucy Bastin have picked up nominations for the academic category while Jessica Morgan has been put forward for the apprentice category for the awards.


The Midlands Women in Tech Awards are an opportunity to highlight and recognise the ongoing contribution of women in the tech sector. The aim of the awards is to raise the visibility of women in the tech space and enable the next generation to ‘see it and therefore aspire to it’.


Jessica Morgan is studying a Digital Technology Solutions apprenticeship with Cap Gemini and Aston University, with experience working on projects within the public sector. She is in the final year of her degree apprenticeship and has been balancing work, studying and volunteering, while being on track for a first class honours.


Reham Badawy is part of the Undergraduate Teaching Team at Aston University. Her research work has used smart tech to detect and monitor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. She is a strong advocate for women in STEM and is a UK Ambassador for Women are Boring.


Lucy Bastin has a Masters in GIS and a PhD in Urban Ecology. She is a senior lecturer in Computer Science and was recently on secondment to the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. She developed web-based biodiversity information systems that support accessible and user-friendly reporting by the international community against policy and conservation targets such as the Sustainable Development Goals.


Professor Kate Sugden, deputy dean for the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Aston University said: “We are delighted to see so many Aston University shortlisted candidates for the Women in Tech Awards.


“In our eyes they are all winners and are great examples of our ongoing commitment to making significant contributions to the region and wider society.”


Voting closes on August 20 and more details about the finalists can be found here: www.womenintechawards.co.uk


The ceremony takes place on 7 October where the winners will be announced.




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Kate Sugden

Kate Sugden

Deputy Dean for Enterprise

Kate Sugden's research interests are in fibre optic sensing systems, fibre Bragg gratings and femtosecond materials processing.

Fibre Bragg GratingsPhysicsOptical Fibre Devices and SystemsOptical SensingOptics

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