TEACHING AWARDS
2025	Vice Chancellor Research Excellence Award (Team Award) for the development of the  Graduate Research Enhancement and Academic Training Modules (self-paced and online)
2024	EPHEA Champion for Change ‘in recognition of the tireless work you do to improve inclusion and access to higher education’.
2022	National STARS Fellowship Award: One of six National Fellows recognised nationally by Student Transition, Achievement Retention and Success (STARS) for sustained contribution to student achievement across the HE sector.
2019	Life-time Achievement Award for Contribution to Equity: Awarded by the Equity Practitioners of Higher Education Australasia (EPHEA)
2017	Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Authority (PFHEA), AdvanceHE, (UK)
2016	National Australian Learning and Teaching Fellow, Office for Learning and Teaching (Australian Government) 
2012	Australian Award for University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning, Australian Federal Government 
2011	University Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning, University of Wollongong 
2009	Vice Chancellor’s Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, University of Newcastle 
2006	Vice Chancellor’s Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, University of Newcastle 

RESEARCH AWARDS  
2025	Named as one of the 2025 Stanford University-Elsevier’s ‘World’s Top 2% Scientists’, an esteemed ranking that identifies the most cited scholars in their fields
2024	Named as one of the 2024 Stanford University-Elsevier’s ‘World’s Top 2% Scientists’, an esteemed ranking that identifies the most cited scholars in their fields
2024	Society for Research in Higher Education (SRHE, UK) 2024 Accolade for Contribution to the Field. This international award recognises an individual researcher’s substantial and significant contribution to understandings of higher education theory and policy including international recognition as an influential figure within a specific field of research. The Society (SRHE) is the peak international body for research and policy work related to higher education. Details at: https://srhe.ac.uk/accolade-winners/#1721742132783-372c890d-a23b
2024	Routledge THE Editor’s Choice Award for 2024 for the article: The politics of student belonging: Identity and purpose.  “This research by Ajjawi, Gravett and O’Shea offers a way to rethink a significant area of the literature on teaching in higher education. They argue that “the notion of belonging should be handled with criticality and care”. It can be tempting to think that universities and educators should be able to find a way to ensure that all students achieve a sense of belonging at university, but if students have an active role to play establishing and curating belongings, then this is not necessarily something that educators can just arrange for their students”. Details at: https://teachinginhighereducation.wordpress.com/2024/04/15/editors-choice-award-for-2024/
2022-23	Awarded an IAS Research Fellowship with University of Surrey (UK) to research 'sense of belonging' for students in the pandemic university .
2019		Equity Research Fellowship, (NCSEHE) researching the postgraduate outcomes for students who are the first in he family to attend university
2019		Best Research Article of the Year, explored the concept of 'student success' from the perspective of out equity cohorts: Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Journal ($5,000)
2019		UOW Research Impact Award, in recognition of my work with first in family students University of Wollongong ($2,000)
2017-		Visiting Professor, Education Sciences Unit, Vienna University, Austria
2017		Churchill Fellowship Award,  funding to explore how first in family students are retained and supported across the UK, US, Canada and Ireland. The trust funded my travel and associated costs. 
2016		UOW Woman of Impact, University of Wollongong 
2015		Top 40 Research in 40 years, University of Wollongong 

LEADERSHIP  – Teaching 

Throughout my three decades long academic career, I have provided tertiary leadership at all levels—from course convenor to Dean. My leadership of HDR, equity, and teaching portfolios at Wollongong University, Newcastle University, Curtin University, and Charles Sturt demonstrates sustained academic leadership. This leadership experience is diverse and includes research teams, institution-wide groups and collaborative networks that span locations, organisations and foci. As Director of a federally funded policy and research centre (National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education), I led nationally impactful and collaborative research agendas at scale. For example, between 2020-2021 I oversaw the completion of 32 research projects (worth 1.1 million), involving collaborations with 76 universities and 152 researchers from across the sector. 

As Dean, Graduate Research and Distinguished Professor in Higher Education Equity at Charles Sturt University (CSU), I have been leading university-wide reform of the HDR journey.  I also head the Higher Education Equity Research Unit (HEERU), focused on addressing systemic inequality in across higher education. As a senior leader in CSU, I am a member of the DVC Research leadership team and contribute to high-level committees (e.g. ARC/NHMRC Grant Accelerator, Research Awards Committee, First Nations Research Strategy Group) that lead CSU's research agenda. 

I have also led activities within the broader university teaching and learning space, including being the Chair of an Academy for Tertiary Teaching and Learning Excellence (WATTLE: 2016-2019) as well as spending a decade as a program convenor for a suite of postgraduate programs in Adult, Vocational and Higher Education. In previous roles at University of Newcastle (1997-2010), I was the Director of Academic Support Services and also, led the Student Support Services at regional campuses for a number of years.

LEADERSHIP – Research 

My leadership in the research field has been diverse and national in intent with a focus on leading equity initiatives across the sector. I am currently a member of the Australian Research Council (ARC) College of Experts and am also involved in assessing grants and advising grant authorities internationally. These have included being an invited expert on both national and international research projects including the Asia Europe Foundation’s (ASEF) Review of Inclusive and Diverse Education in Asia and Europe. In 2022 I was invited to participate in the Productivity Commission Roundtable on Tertiary Education and provide critical feedback on their most recent report relating to lifelong learning. I have been a TEQSA Expert Panel member, an ERA Peer Reviewer in the last ERA as well as being an invited member of the Equity in Higher Education Panel (EHEP), Australian Government  from 2020-2022.

Across all my roles, I have consistently delivered on strategic KPIs across diverse portfolios. At NCSEHE, I met or exceeded federal KPIs annually, increasing sector engagement, media reach, and scholarly output by over 300%. Initiating new HDR pathways and streamlining administrative processes at CSU has resulted in faster admissions and increased enrolments (up 30% since 2023). My work is informed by a strong culture of evaluation and reporting, using data to drive performance and ensure impact. These outcomes also reflect a leadership style that is consultative yet decisive, underpinned by emotional intelligence and strategic communication. During my career, I have also successfully influenced national policy agendas and institutional strategies through clear, evidence-based advocacy and diplomatic leadership. This experience has included leading multi-party research funding processes, chairing multi-party stakeholder meetings as well as liaising with senior executive to lead reform.