Executive & operations
Please contact the Executive Assistant in the first instance if you would like an appointment with a member of the Graduate School's Executive.
Executive Assistant
Danielle Lefebvre
+61 7 3346 0503
exec.assist@gradschool.uq.edu.au
Dean (Acting)
Professor Pierre Benckendorff
+61 7 3346 0502
Researcher biography
Professor Benckendorff is an award-winning educator and researcher specialising in tourism, technology, design, higher education and training. He completed both his undergraduate and postgraduate training at James Cook University, where he was awarded a University Medal. He was awarded a national citation for contributions to student learning in 2007.
Over the last two decades, Pierre has also been actively involved in a number of academic and industry research projects totalling over AUD 1 million in grant funding. He has also worked with state government and tourism operators on a number of regional projects. He has co-authored over 100 publications in leading international journals and is a regular speaker at tourism research conferences. Pierre is on the editorial board of several leading academic journals and is a regular reviewer of papers. He has also co-authored one of the leading textbooks on tourism and information technology. Pierre has a strong track record supervising honours, masters and PhD projects in tourism and education.
Pierre has held several teaching and learning leadership positions at The University of Queensland and James Cook University in Australia. He is a former Chair of the Queensland Tourism Awards judging panel and a judge for the Australian Tourism Awards. His passion for travel and tourism has taken him to some of the world’s leading theme parks and airports, the major cities of Europe and North America, the African Savannah and the bustling streets of Asia. He has also travelled extensively throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Deputy Dean (Acting)
Professor Kim Wilkins
+61 7 3443 1176
deputydean@gradschool.uq.edu.au
Researcher biography
Kim Wilkins is a recognised expert on creative practice, popular literature, and the publishing industry. She is the author of more than 30 full-length works of fiction, and her work is translated into more than 20 languages globally. Her scholarly research centres on creative communities, such as writing groups and fan cultures. She is most recently the author of Genre Worlds: Popular Fiction and 21st-Century Book Culture (with Beth Driscoll and Lisa Fletcher), which outlines a new theory for understanding popular fiction through its related industrial, social, and textual pleasures and processes. Kim is also passionate about interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration and methodologies, and has worked with the Commonwealth Department of Defence and with the European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) on technology foresight, using skills drawn from science fiction and fantasy writing.
Director
Belinda Bern
+61 7 3346 0503
directorgs@gradschool.uq.edu.au
Biography
Belinda has over 10 years’ experience at UQ and has a background in education and research management. In her role as Director of the Graduate School she oversees and manages the development and delivery of research student services and processes for The University of Queensland.
Prior to joining the Graduate School, Belinda was the Research Manager for the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology at UQ. Her strong communication and project management skills enabled her to achieve successful outcomes for the Faculty in the areas of research and research training. Previously Belinda has also worked in academic programs management and educational development roles and started her career as a secondary mathematics teacher. She holds a Bachelor of Mathematics, a Graduate Diploma in Education, and a Master of Educational Studies (Leadership).
In the Graduate School, Belinda is working to further enhance UQ’s reputation for quality and excellence in research training through the development and delivery of key strategic initiatives.
Strategy and Partnerships
Business Analyst
Sam Ferguson
+61 7 3346 0514
graduateschool@uq.edu.au
Higher Degree by Research Partnerships Manager
Leonard Fitzpatrick
+61 7 3365 3477
agreements@gradschool.uq.edu.au
HDR Partnerships Coordinator
Deborah McDonald
+61 7 3346 0533
agreements@gradschool.uq.edu.au