Professor Omar Matar appointed as Vice-Dean (Education) for Engineering

Professor Omar Matar has been appointed as Vice-Dean (Education) for the Faculty of Engineering from 1 August 2017, for a period of 5 years.

Professor Matar’s new role will entail working closely with Directors of Undergraduate Studies, Heads of Department, the Dean of the Faculty, the Deputy-Provost for Education, and other colleagues around the Faculty of Engineering and the College to deliver engineering education of the highest quality.

Commenting on his appointment, Professor Matar said: “I’ll be working to maximise our students’ chances of success post-graduation, and to ensure that they have a unique and memorable experience at Imperial.”

“We face the challenge of having to constantly review and update our curricula so that they remain highly-relevant and topical, and to seek opportunities for blended-learning approaches using cutting-edge e-learning techniques. Addressing issues related to diversity and inclusivity remains a challenge that we must overcome; I see my role as a D&I champion within the Faculty and the College.”

“I was delighted to be asked to become Vice-Dean of Engineering (Education), and I look forward to the next five years, which promise to be very exciting!”

Professor Matar’s appointment marks the continuation of a long-standing association with Imperial. Having started out as an undergraduate in the Department of Chemical Engineering in 1989, he completed his PhD at Princeton University before returning to the Department as a Lecturer in 1998, and became Professor of Fluid Mechanics in 2007. 

Professor Matar has undertaken many roles in the Department of Chemical Engineering, including Undergraduate Admissions Tutor and Director of Undergraduate Studies. He was also awarded a Student Academic Choice Award for Undergraduate Teaching in 2014. He is currently the departmental Director of Research – a role which he will continue to hold in conjunction with his new position.

Professor Matar’s main area of research interest has been in interfacial fluid mechanics, transport phenomena and multiphase flows. He currently holds a Royal Academy of Engineering/PETRONAS Research Chair in Multiphase Fluid Dynamics.