The President

The President represents the Science Council and leads in key strategic areas of the professional registration, influencing science policy, strengthening and supporting science education and the numbers who are engaged in and appreciate science, and ensuring that the Science Council continues to grow both in size and influence. The President is elected by Member Bodies for an initial two-year term and is eligible for election for one further consecutive term of up to two years.

Professor Carole Mundell, President (2021-2023)

Professor Carole Mundell is a world-leading astrophysicist, science diplomat and vocal advocate for diversity in science.

She is the founding Head of Astrophysics at the University of Bath where she holds the Hiroko Sherwin Chair in Extragalactic Astronomy and is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics. She previously served as Head of Physics in Bath, during which time she was also UK chair of the Heads of Physics Forum at the Institute of Physics.

Her career highlights include:

• Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award (2011 to 2016) for the study of black hole-driven explosions and the dynamic Universe.
• Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Board Member and STFC Skills and Engagement Advisory Board Chair (2015).
• FDM Everywoman in Technology Woman of the Year (2016).

In 2018, Carole was seconded to government and became the first women Chief Scientific Adviser at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and, in January 2021, was appointed Chief International Science Envoy at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Carole studied at the University of Glasgow where she gained a BSc in Physics before working at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, University of Manchester, where she completed a PhD in Astrophysics. She later moved to the University of Maryland before joining Liverpool John Moores University, where she received her first professorship in 2007.

A world-leading scientist, Carole is a frequent guest speaker at international conferences. She sits on a number of strategic advisory panels for UK and international groups, is a committed communicator of science, and is an advocate for diversity in science.

Download the President’s role description.