Wendy Ashurst receives Fellowship in recognition of teaching excellence

Congratulations to Wendy Ashurst, Lecturer in Accounting, who has been awarded a Teaching Fellowship by Bangor University in recognition of her excellence in teaching.

A qualified Chartered Accountant with over 15 years’ experience in accounting practice and education, Wendy joined Bangor Business School in 2008. Since then, she has made a significant contribution to accounting programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Head of School Professor John Thornton described Wendy as “an outstanding teacher who uses innovative methods to motivate and inspire her students, which is no easy feat given the very large classes”.

Wendy has also been instrumental to strengthening Bangor Business School’s links with professional accounting body CIMA (the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants). “Wendy has provided valuable input in gaining accreditation for the BA/BSc (Hons) in Accounting & Finance by CIMA”, said Professor Thorton. “The links between Bangor Business School and the professional bodies are crucial for future employment, as they ensure that synergies between their examination programmes and our accounting modules are fully exploited.

“Wendy has been strengthening these links further by regularly inviting representatives of CIMA to give presentations to students. These events are very popular amongst students.”

This is the third Teaching Fellowship awarded in the area of Accounting in as many years, with Colin Bradley and Sara Closs-Davies receiving the honour in 2014 and 2013, respectively.

Some of the students’ comments about Wendy and her teaching methods include:

“Ms. Ashurst is a great lecturer and continues to provide clear and informative explanations to a subject that she clearly understands and prepares well for.”

“Initially, I didn’t find the work that was covered in the financial statement analysis module easy, but Wendy is fantastic at explaining things and making the work much easier to understand. She is always keen to help in any way she can.”

“[Wendy] was the best lecturer that taught me during my whole university experience. She knows very well how to make the student understand complicated information.”

“Wendy is an excellent teacher who pushes students to perform their best.”

Publication date: 16 July 2015