Dr Gemma Sharp (she/her)

About me:

I’m an Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the School of Psychology, where I research and teach about women’s mental health, reproductive health, and early life influences on health and wellbeing.

I lead the Menarche, Menstruation, Menopause and Mental Health (4M) Consortium and teach a third year seminar module on women's reproductive mental health.

I'm also the co-Director of Research and Impact for Psychology, and my role is particularly focused on supporting the department's researchers to generate and evidence impact.

I'm always interested in hearing from students, colleagues or external partners who would like to visit and work with me. Just drop me an email.

Qualifications:

• Environment Health and Sustainable Development (MSc module) - London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
• Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) - University of Bristol
• PhD Reproductive Biology - University of Edinburgh
• MSc Reproduction and Development - University of Bristol
• BSc Biology - Cardiff University

Career:

My career is defined by interdisciplinary collaboration and my drive to conduct impactful research on pressing questions relevant to public health. Having trained as a PhD student in reproductive biology at the Centre for Reproductive Health (University of Edinburgh), I transitioned to molecular epidemiology at the start of my post-doctoral career when I joined the prestigious MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, at the University of Bristol in 2013. My independent career took off in 2015 when I was awarded a lectureship and began securing my own research funding. Around 2020, I shifted my focus to menstrual health, particularly the intersection with mental health. This necessitated a deeper understanding of human psychology and social influences on health, so to expand my perspective, I joined the Psychology Department at the University of Exeter in 2022.