Inside WIHEA

In this episode of Inside WIHEA, ⁠Tom Ritchie⁠ speaks to Sam Wilson-Thain (Director of Student Experience, School of Life Sciences), Echo Zhou (Deputy Director of Student Experience), and Tom Greenway (Intercultural Training Programme Development Consultant) about WISE, the Warwick International Student Experience project.WISE began as a departmental pilot in the School of Life Sciences and Warwick Medical School, co-led with Emily Róisín Reid, before scaling into a full WIHEA masterclass. The project challenges the assumption that international students are a homogenous group. With over 145 nationalities represented at Warwick, the team explores what it takes to understand students as individuals, their backgrounds, their transitions, and their unspoken expectations, and how staff can be better equipped to respond.The conversation covers how international student ambassadors shaped the masterclass content from the inside, surfacing real mismatches between staff assumptions and student experience. The team reflects on the thinking behind a train-the-trainer model designed to embed change sustainably across the institution, alongside the co-produced staff toolkit that underpins it.The episode also explores what meaningful co-creation actually looks like in practice, including the question of whether students should be paid for the work we ask them to do, and what it means to move from equity as a principle to equity in action.Inside WIHEAExploring educational excellence through genuine collaboration between staff and students.A University of Warwick WIHEA PodcastThis podcast series was developed by Dr Tom Ritchie in partnership with the ⁠⁠⁠Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA)⁠⁠⁠. WIHEA is the UK's first institutional academy dedicated to advancing learning and teaching excellence through meaningful partnerships between educators and students, all united by their commitment to 'Learning Beyond Boundaries.'This podcast is designed to take listeners behind the scenes of WIHEA's transformative work, sharing the stories, strategies, and successes that are reshaping higher education. We want to showcase the collaborative innovation happening at the University of Warwick to inspire educators, students, and institutions worldwide.Join each month for in-depth conversations with WIHEA Fellows, alumni, and partners as we explore:Learning Beyond Boundaries: How cross-disciplinary collaboration enhances student opportunities. Innovative Pedagogies: From compassionate teaching to AI-enhanced education. Partnership in Practice: Real stories of staff-student collaboration and co-creation. Global Connections: How WIHEA's work influences higher education internationally.If you want to join the podcast as a guest or learn more about WIHEA, contact ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠.

In this episode of Inside WIHEA, Dr Tom Ritchie⁠ speaks to Professor Caroline Elliott, Professor of Economics and Academic Director for the Social Science Connect project at the University of Warwick. Caroline is a WIHEA alumna, having been a fellow from 2021 to 2024, during which time she co-chaired learning circles on teaching award and recognition and on digital education and technologies for teaching and assessment.Caroline shares the story of the Economics Network - a subject-specific community of academics now over 25 years old - and how her time in WIHEA deepened her confidence in bottom-up, community-led approaches to educational development. She reflects on how WIHEA's ethos of trusting individuals to bring ideas forward influenced her approach to the Economics Network, from the growth of regional networks to the long-term nurturing of early career academics from GTA workshops through to executive membership.The conversation explores research Caroline has been involved in on the careers of teaching-focused economists across the UK, US, and Canada, including the challenges of navigating promotion criteria, job security, and what scholarship of teaching and learning actually means in practice. Caroline also reflects on the parallels between disciplinary communities and institutional ones, and what it means to find people who share your passion for student learning.Caroline finishes with an open invitation to anyone thinking about building their own subject-specific network or community of practice, and the encouragement that pushing on this door is very rarely pushing alone.Inside WIHEAExploring educational excellence through genuine collaboration between staff and students.A University of Warwick WIHEA PodcastThis podcast series was developed by Dr Tom Ritchie in partnership with the ⁠⁠Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA)⁠⁠. WIHEA is the UK's first institutional academy dedicated to advancing learning and teaching excellence through meaningful partnerships between educators and students, all united by their commitment to 'Learning Beyond Boundaries.'This podcast is designed to take listeners behind the scenes of WIHEA's transformative work, sharing the stories, strategies, and successes that are reshaping higher education. We want to showcase the collaborative innovation happening at the University of Warwick to inspire educators, students, and institutions worldwide.Join each month for in-depth conversations with WIHEA Fellows, alumni, and partners as we explore:Learning Beyond Boundaries: How cross-disciplinary collaboration enhances student opportunities. Innovative Pedagogies: From compassionate teaching to AI-enhanced education. Partnership in Practice: Real stories of staff-student collaboration and co-creation. Global Connections: How WIHEA's work influences higher education internationally.If you want to join the podcast as a guest or learn more about WIHEA, contact ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠.

In this episode of Inside WIHEA, Dr Tom Ritchie speaks to Dr Yanyan Li, IAS Early Career Fellow and WIHEA Student Fellow (2024-2025), about her journey from student researcher to educational leader through WIHEA's mentorship and partnership model.Yanyan led a student-driven research project interviewing students across the university about their AI use, challenging narratives of students as either "cheating or blindly relying on AI". Her work revealed students as thoughtful, strategic, and critical - experimenting with AI, questioning outputs, and setting boundaries, often without institutional guidance. The project produced a policy brief with recommendations for educational practice and opened doors to national conferences and symposiums.The conversation explores what genuine staff-student partnership looks like in practice. Yanyan reflects on how WIHEA legitimised her confidence, positioned her work within recognised academic networks, and helped her see herself as someone who belongs in spaces she'd previously doubted entering. She discusses what WIHEA mentorship meant for her development, and how she organised the Building Bridges symposium on Human-AI Interaction.Yanyan discusses how her time as a WIHEA Student Fellow expanded her sense of what feels "legitimate, meaningful, and achievable". She finishes by sharing how she now works to extend WIHEA's ethos forward by supporting others.Inside WIHEAExploring educational excellence through genuine collaboration between staff and students. A University of Warwick WIHEA PodcastThis podcast series was developed by Dr Tom Ritchie in partnership with the ⁠Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA)⁠. WIHEA is the UK's first institutional academy dedicated to advancing learning and teaching excellence through meaningful partnerships between educators and students, all united by their commitment to 'Learning Beyond Boundaries.'This podcast is designed to take listeners behind the scenes of WIHEA's transformative work, sharing the stories, strategies, and successes that are reshaping higher education. We want to showcase the collaborative innovation happening at the University of Warwick to inspire educators, students, and institutions worldwide.Join each month for in-depth conversations with WIHEA Fellows, alumni, and partners as we explore:Learning Beyond Boundaries: How cross-disciplinary collaboration enhances student opportunities. Innovative Pedagogies: From compassionate teaching to AI-enhanced education. Partnership in Practice: Real stories of staff-student collaboration and co-creation. Global Connections: How WIHEA's work influences higher education internationally.If you want to join the podcast as a guest or learn more about WIHEA, contact ⁠[email protected]⁠.

In this first episode of Inside WIHEA, Dr Tom Ritchie speaks to Jess Humphreys, Director of the Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA) to explore what makes it unique in the higher education landscape.Fresh from celebrating their 10th anniversary, Jess reflects on a record-breaking year in 2024-25, with 46 new Fellows, including 16 students who led projects on AI in education, inclusive learning spaces, and doctoral communities. Jess explains how WIHEA's Learning Circles are driving institutional change, from anti-racist pedagogy to building belonging, and pedagogies of public and community engagement. The conversation explores WIHEA's expanding partnerships with Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence and Exeter Education Incubator, revealing how these collaborations are creating sector-wide impact. Jess also shares her vision for the future, including international opportunities and the power of staff-student partnership in transforming educational excellence. Discover how WIHEA is redefining what higher education can achieve in partnership working.Inside WIHEAExploring educational excellence through genuine collaboration between staff and students. A University of Warwick WIHEA PodcastThis podcast series was developed by Dr Tom Ritchie in partnership with the Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA). WIHEA is the UK's first institutional academy dedicated to advancing learning and teaching excellence through meaningful partnerships between educators and students, all united by their commitment to 'Learning Beyond Boundaries.'This podcast is designed to take listeners behind the scenes of WIHEA's transformative work, sharing the stories, strategies, and successes that are reshaping higher education. We want to showcase the collaborative innovation happening at the University of Warwick to inspire educators, students, and institutions worldwide.Join each month for in-depth conversations with WIHEA Fellows, alumni, and partners as we explore:Learning Beyond Boundaries: How cross-disciplinary collaboration enhances student opportunities. Innovative Pedagogies: From compassionate teaching to AI-enhanced education. Partnership in Practice: Real stories of staff-student collaboration and co-creation. Global Connections: How WIHEA's work influences higher education internationally.If you want to join the podcast as a guest or learn more about WIHEA, contact [email protected].