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Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Enterprise, Engagement and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics)

Professor Hanifa Shah is Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Enterprise, Engagement and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics). Hanifa is also responsible for Global Partnerships – driving the university’s international ambitions, expanding its global footprint, and delivering high-impact transnational education (TNE) initiatives. She provides strategic leadership for research and knowledge exchange, ensuring delivery of BCU’s 2030 Strategy and its impact regionally, nationally and internationally. Her remit includes driving enterprise, business innovation, and regional economic growth through knowledge exchange.

Hanifa is the UK’s first Pro Vice-Chancellor with responsibility for STEAM. As a recognised international leader in the field, she has reimagined the role of higher education through STEAM and spearheaded a systemic approach to embedding interdisciplinary thinking at the heart of university education and innovation. Through the purposeful integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Humanities, and Mathematics, this changes how universities prepare students for a world defined by complexity, rapid innovation cycles, and human–machine interaction shaped by AI.

At ̽»¨Ö±²¥, Hanifa has led the embedding of STEAM into curricula, enabling students to build the technical expertise, creative confidence, and critical awareness sought by employers. Her leadership has also strengthened the link between STEAM and employability, entrepreneurship, and societal impact – ensuring graduates are equipped to adapt, collaborate, and lead across diverse sectors. She has positioned BCU at the forefront of interdisciplinary education, demonstrating how STEAM can shape innovation that is not only technologically advanced, but also ethical, inclusive, and profoundly human-centred.

Previously, she served as Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean for the Faculties of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment, and Arts, Design and Media. She joined BCU in 2010 as Associate Dean for Research and Enterprise, following 16 years in senior roles at Staffordshire University, including Director of the Centre for Information, Intelligence and Security Systems. She also held a Visiting Professorship at the University of Manchester.

Hanifa’s career spans teaching, research, industry collaboration, strategic planning, and leadership of people, operations and finance. A leading researcher in information systems, she is an advocate of interdisciplinary research and has led initiatives in Artificial Intelligence, 5G, IoT, Smart Cities and Data Analytics. She has pioneered industry-linked education, expanding access to Higher Education for working professionals and influencing national thinking on work-based learning.

She is a Principal Fellow of Advance HE, a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the British Computer Society, and has supervised 25 PhDs and published over 100 papers. She has secured major funding from the EPSRC, EU, and UK industry. Hanifa also champions diversity in STEM, mentoring women in tech and working to break down barriers to gender equity in the sector.

Hanifa is a trustee of the Millennium Point Trust and serves on the board of the Greater ̽»¨Ö±²¥ and Solihull Institute of Technology.

In 2025, she was awarded an OBE for services to Higher Education.