Jason Nurse joined the University of Kent in 2018 as a Lecturer in the School of Computing. His research focuses on interaction between users and aspects of cyber security, privacy and trust, which considers the full spectrum of technologies in use today. Jason studied for his undergraduate degree in the West Indies, before completing his Masters at the University of Hull and finally a PhD at the University of Warwick.
In your opinion, what is the value of higher education?
It opens ones mind to different experiences, to knowledge, to information, and that’s the really important thing about it. That for me is the key value and why I would suggest individuals pursue a higher education, because there's a breadth of topics you can get involved in at many different levels, from undergraduate to masters and PhD’s, such a variety of domains. One can therefore specialise in a field so that for me is a key value.
How does Kent compare to other educational institutions?
I studied at the University of Warwick, that’s where I completed my PhD/doctorate. Prior to that I did a Masters at the University of Hull, and before that I studied at the University of the West Indies in the Caribbean. I am learning more and more about Kent each day, I think it’s a really nice campus and a vibrant environment, slightly different to the environments I’ve engaged with before. Of course Kent is much more of a campus university, some universities I’ve been at in the past are much more city orientated and that brings a different dynamic.
What do you value most about teaching?
It’s the variety of students that you get and trying to help students to go from not understanding an aspect or problem, to then understanding it. It’s a great feeling to help someone understand and for some students even allowing them the ability to go on and learn more just by teaching them the basics. Then allow them to go on and even teach you simply because they’ve had the time to dive into problems that potentially, as an academic, I haven’t had the time.
What do you value most about doing research?
It’s just new ideas. The biggest thing about engaging in research is the fact that you can think about a different problem or encounter something online or offline or via conversation, and that’s something you are free to pursue. For me it is this level of thinking you don’t usually get in normal companies or industries. You get this ability to go and think about really interesting problems, and that benefits society really as it’s about how we can push forward the thinking or push forward knowledge in a particular area.
The biggest thing about engaging in research is the fact that you can think about a different problem or encounter something online or offline or via conversation, and that’s something you are free to pursue.
What has been your greatest achievement since joining the University of Kent?
I’ve had a few good opportunities, and a few successful projects and research grants being awarded. I’ve gained the opportunity to bring in the necessary funding as academics do, write articles, research papers, as academics do and engage with a wider community of people here. For me it’s probably bringing in research funding that’s always really important for an academic and also for the university.
What are your plans for the future?
What are your next projects/goals? I’ll be starting a few new projects over the upcoming months. One is about chatbots and trying to understand how chatbots actually engage with individuals, which is really interesting. Especially today where we see various chatbots, conversation agents expanding, whether it be sales, marketing, university, there’s a wide variety of them now. Also, other projects I’m focusing on concern cyber security, mainly aspects in the home and workplace, and lastly focusing a bit more on cyber criminals and how cyber criminals behave and act. Those are probably the three strands I have started and I’m really excited about them.
What motivates you to do the work that you do?
For me the biggest push is new ideas and different ideas, waking up one day and thinking "I can research a completely different theory", or I can hear something based on a conversation and think “that sounds really interesting, I’d like to research that!”. Having that flexibility is such an exciting thing, why would you not want to wake up and go to a job where you can do practically what you want. Also you get the ability to engage with the minds of the future, in that you can engage with them whether it’s teaching, small research projects, and internships. It’s a really good opportunity to push forward knowledge, to set up students and help them expand their knowledge.
Do you have any tips or advice for UKC students?
Always study hard, don’t think of study for the sake of it, always think about the things you learn, the things you do, whether it be projects, assignments, even just being in class, how it can push you forward when you come to finishing university. Whether you want to join industry, academia or even do a PhD, always think about how the work you’re currently doing helps you to get to that point, because I think that instills a bit of additional motivation for you. Not just trying to pass an exam but thinking, “if I do well in this, it means that I can apply this to my future in this particular way”.
