Our team

Whether you to know more about the XJTLU-Liverpool partnership or are an XJTLU student with a question about applying to Liverpool, we would love to hear from you.

Name	Role	Contact details
Professor Simon Jones	Dean for XJTLU	simon.jones2@liverpool.ac.uk
Urusla Callaghan	Head of International Relations	uhenry@liverpool.ac.uk
Sarah Husain	Associate Director for Global Opportunities	sabowers@liverpool.ac.uk
Steve Bickerstaff	Head of Postgraduate Researcher Experience	pret@liverpool.ac.uk
Alan Smithson	Academic Quality Support Officer	alan.smithson@liverpool.ac.uk
Eleanor Forrester	Project Manager, XJTLU partnership	e.forrester@liverpool.ac.uk

Professor Simon Jones - Dean for XJTLU

Professor Simon Jones is available to discuss all strategic aspects of the XJTLU-Liverpool partnership. He is responsible for facilitating the continuing success of the partnership with the University of Liverpool across the diverse academic portfolio, covering Engineering, Science, Health and Life Science, Humanities, and Social Sciences. 

Read Simon's profile

Ursula Callaghan - Head of International Relations

Contact Ursula by email uhenry@liverpool.ac.uk.

Ursula Callaghan heads up the International Relations team in Student Recruitmentand Admissions which is responsible for managing international partnerships from which the University admits new students each year.

Ursula has been involved with the XJTLU partnership for many years supporting the flow of students transferring to Liverpool on the 2+2 programme working through the XJTLU Link Tutor Working Group, the relevant faculty Student Intake Groups as well as Marketing and Admissions colleagues internally; and liaising with a wide range of stakeholders at XJTLU from Registry, Student Affairs, XJTLU Global and the University Marketing and Communications team.

Ursula co-manages a member of staff in Registry at XJLTU, Ann Zhan who acts as the Liverpool Mobility Manager at XJTLU. Gabriella Chen in Ursula’s Team manages a team of 2+2 Student Ambassadors, working with them to develop content for communications with prospective 2+2 students delivered through Chinese social media channels which Gabriella manages. The team oversees the content on the University’s 2+2 webpages. Ursula and colleagues also work alongside the Global Opportunities team, who manage the Taicang Year in Liverpool (2+1+1) programme.

Sarah Husain - Associate Director for Global Opportunities 

Contact Sarah by email sabowers@liverpool.ac.uk.

Sarah is responsible for the strategic direction of Global Opportunities at the University of Liverpool and overseeing the work of the team. Her responsibilities in relation to XJTLU include the Year in China, which provides Liverpool undergraduates with an exciting opportunity to spend a year at XJTLU gaining exposure to Chinese language and culture, as well as overseeing Liverpool students attending summer schools at XJTLU.

On the inbound side Sarah is responsible for overseeing the new Taicang 2+1+1 which provides students from Data Science and Big Data Technology with Contemporary Entrepreneurialism BEng (Hons) and Intelligent Supply Chain with Contemporary Entrepreneurialism BSc (Hons) with the opportunity to spend a year in Liverpool as part of their degree. You can contact her for queries about any of these programmes.

Steve Bickerstaff - Head of Postgraduate Researcher Experience

Contact Steve by email pret@liverpool.ac.uk. 

Steve Bickerstaff has worked in the postgraduate research (PGR) environment for 7 years and is currently Director of the Postgraduate Experience Team. Steve is responsible for ensuring that the needs and requirements of PGR students are prominent in the University’s planning and delivery models and that PGR students are located in the faculties.

Steve works closely with colleagues across all areas of the PGR spectrum to coordinate and implement an outstanding and ambitious professional support model for postgraduate researchers aiming to position the University as a leader in the sector. This involves working closely with colleagues in the PGR community to align efforts to support PGR students.

As the University’s PGR Professional Service lead for the XJTLU PGR partnership, Steve works closely with the Dean of XJTLU and the Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research Environment and Postgraduate research in managing the University’s PGR relationship with XJTLU. The role involves working closely with colleagues at XJTLU to develop a comprehensive UoL-XJTLU PGR strategy and action plan, covering areas such as new supervisory models, the doctoral programme portfolio, strategic expansion of PGR initiatives and enhancing the PGR culture and support system.

Alan Smithson - Academic Quality Support Officer

Alan can be contacted for information and advice on quality assurance procedures, policies and regulations. Contact Alan by email alan.smithson@liverpool.ac.uk.

Alan Smithson is the Academic Quality Support Officer for the partnership with Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) and is based in the University of Liverpool’s Academic Quality and Standards Division.

Alan’s role is to provide support and expertise in matters relating to quality assurance and enhancement. This encompasses supporting XJTLU programme development, annual monitoring, accreditation processes, approval of external examiners and external consultants, along with providing secretarial support to committees relating to quality assurance and enhancement in supporting the partnership with XJTLU.

Alan works closely with a range of colleagues at both institutions, including XJTLU’s Education and Quality Assurance office, and Liverpool's Link Tutors. 

Eleanor Forrester - Project Manager

Contact Eleanor by email e.forrester@liverpool.ac.uk.

Eleanor can provide more information about the different workstreams and areas of focus within the XJTLU Partnership Project, the Taicang 2+1+1, and developments within the XJTLU-Liverpool partnership. Eleanor also supports the central co-ordination of visits to XJTLU.

Eleanor Forrester is a Project Manager based within the University of Liverpool’s Strategic Change department, supporting Professor Simon Jones to develop the XJTLU-Liverpool partnership, in line with the University of Liverpool’s Strategy 2031. This includes working with stakeholders across the University of Liverpool and XJTLU to deliver a range of outputs across the project workstreams, as agreed by the Senior Leadership Team. Eleanor has also been involved in the development of the new Taicang 2+1+1 mobility option for students.

Follow us on our Chinese social media channels

XJTLU students are encouraged to follow the University of Liverpool on Chinese social media channels for important news and updates and to find out more about student life in Liverpool. Applicants will be invited to join 2+2 or the Taicang 2+1+1 WeChat groups after submitting their applications.

WeChat	Weibo	Douyin	Red	Bilibili