Chancellor impressed by 'phenomenal' School of Sport and Exercise Sciences

LJMU Chancellor, Nisha Katona MBE, was impressed by the ‘phenomenal’ School of Sport and Exercise Sciences after spending an afternoon with students in a variety of hi-tech facilities used for teaching and research.

It’s a significant year for the school which is celebrating 50 years of sport science having launched the UK’s first sports science degree in 1975. Today LJMU remains one of the best universities in the world for sport and exercise science – ranking sixth in the world and second in the UK for the subject in the QS World University Rankings 2024.

Nisha met with a range of undergraduate and postgraduate students studying programmes in sport nutrition, sport and exercise science, physiology and performance, clinical biomechanics, and clinical exercise physiology.

She watched demonstrations in motion capture used to assess and treat sporting injuries as well as learning about the different uses for sensors, from the gamification of rehabilitation activities for children to assessing fall risk in the older population.

Students also guided the Chancellor through a range of fascinating lab-based activities which included blood glucose monitoring, functional cardiorespiratory fitness experiments, and ultrasound and ECG tests on the heart.

Nisha said: “What always strikes me whenever I come to any of the schools, and what I love, is the passion of the students. These are students who are dedicating their lives to sports, to sports nutrition, to this interest in the subject they are studying.  

What’s also phenomenal is that we have so many students that come to this school because it has such an incredible reputation worldwide. You come here and the level of kit that every department has is important and exciting, and watching the students interact with that kit is fab - they love the lab work.

Nisha Katona MBE, Chancellor of LJMU

“It just warms my heart to see students’ eyes shining because they love the university course that they are doing so much. It is a real testament to the staff that work here - you just feel the passion that they have got for their students and for their subjects as well, you just come away and it’s like a tonic.”

Nisha also had the opportunity to share her culinary expertise with nutrition students who prepared dishes for the chef from a community cookbook they developed in collaboration with community groups and healthcare providers in Kirkby.

The students served the Chancellor a bowl of Scouse – a popular type of stew eaten in Liverpool made with meat, potatoes, carrots, and onions – which she described as ‘delicious’ and expressed her pride in the impactful contribution that the students are making in the university’s local communities. Nisha added: 

The students have this absolute passion for food, and the way that food can change communities and better communities. This is about humble, frugal food that is absolutely delicious - that’s really one of my big passions. To see that going through to the next generation is really encouraging.

About LJMU Chancellor Nisha Katona MBE

Nisha became LJMU Chancellor in January 2022, becoming the first alumni chancellor of the university. She is an ambassador, advocate and role model for our students and staff.

She studied Law at LJMU from 1992 to 1995 and joined Lincoln’s Inn as a Barrister in 1996. She built up a successful family law practice over 18 years before leaving the Bar in 2014 to set up her own business, Mowgli – now recognised as one of the fastest growing restaurant movements in the country.

Alongside the restaurants, Nisha founded The Mowgli Trust to support Mowgli Street Foods charitable goals and has so far donated over £2 million to local and international causes. Each of the Mowgli Restaurants supports a charity within their community with a focus on children’s hospices, supporting children with life limiting illnesses and cancer charities. The Mowgli Trust also has international aims and is currently partnered with Chester Zoo to prevent the extinction of the Asian Elephant in Assam, India and working on the ground with Plan International, redeveloping two girls’ schools and improving access to education in Varanasi, India.

Study with the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences

Graduates of the school go on to do amazing things in the world of sport and exercise, from working alongside elite athletes in professional sport to improving the health and wellbeing of communities at a grassroots level.

You can find out more about LJMU’s School of Sport and Exercise Sciences and search through the available courses. 

World-leading research

The School of Sport and Exercise Sciences is also home to world-leading research that serves to inform and transform local and global communities, creating a wider positive impact across sport and exercise sciences.