Background:
Summary of Methods Used
Simple Example:
Theory
The Vibrations
Research Topics:
Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAMEs)
School of Chemistry
The Queen's University of Belfast
Laboratory News Industry Awards 2003
Roma Oakes, a Queen’s University School of Chemistry PhD student, has been announced as the winner of a prestigious national competition to find the UK's ‘Most Promising PhD Student of 2003’.
The competition, organised by ‘Laboratory News’ and sponsored by Olympus Ltd and ThermoElecton Inc, covers all branches of science and technology.
Roma learnt of her achievement when she travelled to London to attend a gala Awards Ceremony at the Dorchester Hotel.
Announcing the Award, the judges said how impressed they were by the quality of Roma’s research and cited her long list of publications, posters and presented talks as key to her success in the competition.
Roma Oakes, from the School of Chemistry at Queen’s University Belfast, has been announced as the UK’s most promising PhD Student. She received the award in London recently from (left) Ashley Shepherd representing the award sponsors and the evening’s host, Jonathan Gould from Channel 5.
Roma is in the third year of her PhD studies and is funded by the McClay Trust, a charitable body set up to support research in the University's Schools of Chemistry and Pharmacy. She is supervised by Dr Steven Bell and her project is concerned with computational chemistry. She uses high-level theory to help interpret the group’s experimental results on the laser analysis of materials that range from light-driven anti-cancer agents to ‘ecstasy’ tablets.
Commenting on her award Roma said, "I was already thrilled to have made it through to the final in London, but to hear that I was the overall winner was even better! I’m now busy writing my PhD thesis, but I hope to stay in academic research, preferably at Queen’s. My eldest daughter is already a Queen’s student and her younger sister hopes to study here next year."
Dr Bell was delighted with Roma’s success and remarked that, "It has been a pleasure to act as Roma’s supervisor and her award is thoroughly deserved. She has been an outstanding student and role model. This award confirms what we already knew: good post-graduate students are the key to successful research, and in the School of Chemistry at Queen’s our students really are first class."
