Paul Shaw, lecturer in audiology, School of Healthcare, Leeds University
Advertised in The Times Higher , November 5, 2004
After four weeks in the job, Paul Shaw, lecturer in audiology, is getting over the transition from a busy National Health Service hospital to the academic environment of the School of Healthcare at Leeds University.
"I knew Leeds as a student 15-16 years ago, but after 10 years of working in the NHS in Nottingham, I was looking for something different," Mr Shaw said. "Having worked as an audiological scientist in a paediatric hearing centre, the new position was an attractive challenge, a step into the unknown."
In the UK, audiology, the science of hearing and balance, recently underwent a major national reorganisation, uniting various professions under the umbrella of the British Academy of Audiology.
"BSc Audiology, a new discipline across the UK, is now the major entry route to the profession," Mr Shaw said. "We're training people as registered audiologists, enabling them to practise and work in the NHS. I'm responsible for teaching some second-year modules, along with a lot of administration and course development responsibilities.
"As a nationally developing area, the parameters are in constant flux, although I enjoy being involved in structuring the course. Despite its being a lot of work, it's much better than simply coming in and taking over someone else's teaching."
Shaw starts a teaching course in September in parallel with lecturing as one of the requirements of the appointment.
"I taught previously in a limited role," he said. "Now I have more lecture-style sessions as well as practicals demonstrating equipment and methods since audiology is a test-based discipline."