Professor Nicola Wilkin BSc, PhD, PFHEA, FInstP, FRSA

School of Physics and Astronomy
University Academic Director of Digital Education and Equity
Professor of Physics

Contact details

Email: n.k.wilkin@bham.ac.uk

Address: School of Physics and Astronomy
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Nicola Wilkin leads the University's academic strategy for generative AI, across education and research. Professor of Physics and Birmingham's first Academic Director of Digital Education and Equity, she also leads nationally on inclusion in physics.

Qualifications

PhD in Theoretical Physics, University of Manchester, 1993
BSc in Physics with Mathematics, University of Southampton 1990
Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA)
Fellow of the Institute of Physics (FInstP)
Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)

Biography

Appointed in 2023 as the University's first Academic Director of Digital Education and Equity, Nicola sets how Birmingham uses generative AI across education and research, reporting to the Pro-Vice-Chancellors for Education and for Research. She co-authored the University's approach to AI in assessment, and led the design of its digital education ecosystem, chairing the group that governs it.

Before this she was Director of Education for the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences from 2016 to 2023, and helped win and set up the education programme for the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Topological Design.

Teaching

Nicola teaches theoretical physics and science communication. Her third-year Physics Critique module has students work as science journalists and policy writers, examining research for bias and using generative AI as a working partner. Her careers support focuses on the AI literacy physics graduates now need.

Postgraduate supervision

Nicola is not taking new doctoral researchers at present. She mentors early-career researchers, and welcomes contact from those working on digital education, learning analytics or inclusion in STEM.

Research

Nicola's physics research is in theoretical condensed matter, with highly-cited work on ultracold atomic gases and studies of vortices in mesoscopic superconductors.

She now also researches education and technology, working with the international learning analytics community on generative AI and student feedback, presented at the LAK conference with Canvas.

A doctoral thesis in her area produced the machine-learning algorithm behind Graide, a University AI-marking spin-out backed by venture capital.

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Miller-Friedmann, J, Hillier, J & Wilkin, N 2024, 'Being a physicist: Gendered identity negotiations on the pathways to becoming an elite female physicist in the United Kingdom', Journal of Research in Science Teaching, pp. 1-35. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21980

Tomlinson, A & Wilkin, N 2022, 'Controlled transitions between phyllotactic states of repulsive particles confined on the surface of a cylinder', Europhysics Letters, vol. 136, no. 3, 38001. https://doi.org/10.1209/0295-5075/ac4620

Ansell, HS, Tomlinson, AA & Wilkin, NK 2020, 'Transitions between phyllotactic lattice states in curved geometries', Scientific Reports, vol. 10, no. 1, 17411. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-74158-x

Watkins, J & Wilkin, N 2019, 'Extruding the vortex lattice: two reacting populations of dislocations', Europhysics Letters, vol. 126, no. 1, 16002. https://doi.org/10.1209/0295-5075/126/16002

Parke, MI, Wilkin, N, Gunn, J & Bourne, A 2008, 'Exact vortex nucleation and cooperative vortex tunneling in dilute Bose-Einstein condensates', Physical Review Letters, vol. 101, no. 11, 110401. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.110401

Parke, MI, Wilkin, N, Gunn, J & Bourne, A 2008, 'Vortices as quantum objects in the lowest Landau level', Physical Review A, vol. 76, no. 5, 053602. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.76.053602

Bourne, A, Wilkin, N & Gunn, J 2006, 'Anomalous hydrodynamics and normal fluids in rapidly rotating Bose-Einstein condensates', Physical Review Letters, vol. 96, no. 24, pp. 240401. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.96.240401

Cooper, N, Wilkin, N & Gunn, J 2001, 'Quantum Phases of Vortices in Rotating Bose-Einstein Condensates', Physical Review Letters, vol. 87, no. 12, pp. 120405. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.87.120405

Wilkin, N & Gunn, J 2000, 'Condensation of “Composite Bosons” in a Rotating BEC', Physical Review Letters, vol. 84, no. 1, pp. 6-9. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.84.6

Smith, R & Wilkin, N 2000, 'Exact eigenstates for repulsive bosons in two dimensions', Physical Review A, vol. 62, no. 6, 061602. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.62.061602

Wilkin, N & Gunn, J 2000, 'Vortices and collective excitations in rotating BECs', Physica B - Physics of Condensed Matter, vol. 284-288, pp. 23-24. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0921-4526(99)01955-9

Cooper, N & Wilkin, N 1999, 'Composite fermion description of rotating Bose-Einstein condensates', Physical Review B, vol. 60, no. 24, pp. 16279-16282. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.60.R16279

Conference contribution

Stanyon, R, Kainth, M, Martello, E & Wilkin, N 2022, Demo of Graide: AI powered assistive grading engine. in L@S '22: Proceedings of the Ninth ACM Conference on Learning @ Scale. vol. 2022, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), pp. 466-468, L@S '22, New York, New York, United States, 1/06/22. https://doi.org/10.1145/3491140.3528263

Stanyon, R, Tomlinson, A, Kainth, M & Wilkin, N 2022, Providing individual student feedback at scale for mathematical disciplines. in L@S 2022 - Proceedings of the 9th ACM Conference on Learning @ Scale: Proceedings of the Ninth ACM Conference on Learning @ Scale. vol. 2022, L@S 2022 - Proceedings of the 9th ACM Conference on Learning @ Scale, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), New York, pp. 400-404, L@S '22, New York, New York, United States, 1/06/22. https://doi.org/10.1145/3491140.3528313

Paper

Wilkin, N, Gunn, J, Parke, MI & Bourne, A 2009, 'Rapidly Rotating Ultracold Bosonic Gases (abstract)', Paper presented at AIP Conference Proceedings: WOMEN IN PHYSICS: Third IUPAP International Conference on Women in Physics, 1/01/09 pp. 248-248.

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

Digital education and generative AI in learning, teaching and assessment; learning analytics; inclusion in physics and STEM; theoretical condensed matter physics.

Media experience

BBC Radio 4, In Our Time (absolute zero).

Expertise

Equity and inclusion in STEM higher education; digital education strategy; generative AI in education and assessment.

Policy experience

On behalf of the Institute of Physics Council, chaired the group that created the Physics Inclusion Award, the national portfolio-based successor to Juno for physics departments across the UK and Ireland.