Ian Stevens obtained his B.Sc from University College London in 1985 and moved to the Department of Physics and Astronomy at UCL for his Ph.D (working with Prof. Allan Willis and Prof. Sir Robert Wilson) on theoretical modelling of the massive supersonic winds from high mass stars, particularly those in binary systems.
After his Ph.D he moved to the USA to work at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre, located in Maryland, just outside of the Washington D.C.
In 1990 he returned to the UK, to the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge and then moved to the University of Birmingham in the mid 1990's, initially as a postdoctoral fellow, then as a holder of a PPARC Advanced Fellowship holder and then onto a permanent academic appointment.