Research analyst Kevin Pelan collects his fourth degree from the University of Ulster at the winter graduation ceremony in Derry’s Millennium Forum today.

It is a special day for the university and two other Irish universities who have collaborated to develop the specialist degree on laws and procedures on international food production and handling.

Kevin, from Belfast, is among 14 students graduating with an MSc in European Food Regulatory Affairs – the first of its kind in Europe. He came top of the class, winning the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance Prize, which is sponsored by the Food Standards Agency Northern Ireland and the Food safety Authority of Ireland.

“I had been looking for a course in which I could take forward the type of work I’m doing at present, which is all about scrutinising agricultural and rural development policies, and, in particular, would help me develop knowledge of regulation relating to the agri-food sector,” said Kevin who is a researcher with the Northern Ireland assembly research service, which was established to assist statutory committees and members of the Northern Ireland Assembly with scrutiny and analysis of complex policy areas.

“Regulatory matters are an expanding and fast-changing area that demands specialised knowledge. This course provided what I needed. It was about the politics behind policy-making as well as the science behind the regulations. The quality and range of the on-line lecturers was impressive. We had lecturers from the public and private sector from all over Europe who gave us a wider canvas of learning than what you would expect in a ‘bricks and mortar’ lecture-room.”

Kevin graduated with a BSc Hons in biology in 1989, and took a Masters degree (with distinction) in environmental management in 1995. He followed that with a PhD based on a study of freshwater ecology, which he received in 2001.

The MSc course was developed by the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance (IUNA) which was formed in 1993 to develop closer links between the nutrition units of University of Ulster, Trinity College Dublin and University College Cork.

The MSc programme is delivered via the Internet by CampusOne, the University of Ulster’s online campus. Students on the course are travelling from Canada, Malta and Belgium to the ceremony where they will at last meet face-to-face after two years of study.

The student travelling from Canada is Melody Harwood, from Toronto, who has family links with Derry. The course was developed to meet a need for formal training in food regulatory affairs. Initial funding came from the European Commission.

Winter Graduations 2004

For further information, please contact:

David Young
Telephone: 028 90366074
Email: David Young