About Us

Meet the committee

Meet the dedicated volunteers who drive Butex forward, bringing their passion and expertise to support and shape the future of global student mobility.

Rohan McCarthy-Gill

I am the Head of Global Mobility at the University of Sussex, and have been working in international and higher education for 25 years in British and Australian universities.

I’ve spent most of my career managing study abroad and international student recruitment teams. I studied abroad myself during my university degree, undertaking an immersive Arabic language semester in Kuwait City.

Paulina Swann

With over a decade in International Education, I lead global mobility at NTU, managing exchange partnerships, Turing funding, and a dynamic team.

Passionate about sustainability, student support, and risk management, I actively contribute to UUKi groups, driving innovation in international education and expanding opportunities for students and staff worldwide.

Nanna Pedley

I am the Placements and International Programmes Officer at the University of Manchester and have over 20 years of experience in higher education, working across student mobility, international student recruitment, marketing and communications and international admissions.

At Manchester I oversee the promotion of international mobility opportunities to current and prospective students as well as being responsible for supporting our outbound students going to the USA and Canada.

Gina Ralph

After completing my undergraduate studies at the University of Roehampton, I went on to work in their UK recruitment team, managing large-scale on-campus events and then moved into the Roehampton Abroad team as their Outward Mobility and Exchanges Officer.

After serving as Roehampton’s lead contact for Butex, and attending many conferences, I’m excited to take on the role as Events Officer for the committee.

Isobel Mosley

I am the Global Opportunities Manager at the University of Nottingham.

I have worked in international higher education for over ten years and my main areas of focus are international summer schools and short-term study abroad opportunities for undergraduate students and widening access to study abroad opportunities.

Jamie Bettles

I founded Pagoda Projects in 2017 after building InternChina together with my business partner Frank since 2009. I sold Pagoda to the Unseen Group in 2023 and left the business a year later.

I firmly believe that gaining experience overseas can be transformative and I’m working to make the kind of opportunities I benefited from available to any student.

Oliver Bakewell

As Study Abroad Manager at the University of Hull, I oversee the development, support, and promotion of student mobility programmes for both inbound and outbound students, including study abroad, placements, summer opportunities and volunteering projects.

I have worked in international HE for around 9 years. I am looking forward to working collaboratively with Butex to host the Annual Conference in 2025.

Kathryn O’Connor

After spending ten years managing international programs, supporting volunteers and students on placements in multiple countries, I took on a role at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) where I managed the International Leadership Development program sending 400 students a year on international placements.

I now use my experience gained at UTS to support Butex in their endeavours to promote learning abroad.

Co-opted committee members

Meet the experts enriching our mission with their unique insights

Inez Janna Summers

I joined the University of Manchester in July 2023 where I manage outbound study exchanges, work placements nationally and internationally, fieldwork and group activities across all schools at the University.

Prior to my current role, I worked at the universities of Salford, Durham, Newcastle, Kent and Sheffield in both the UK and in Belgium covering recruitment, student support, and, in recent years, international mobility.

Maggie Wootton

I am the Head of International Mobility (Outgoing) at the University of Birmingham

I am passionate about creating international opportunities for students and staff, and have had the privilege of working on a wide range of exciting international projects, including international recruitment, TNE partnerships and student mobility.

Gemma Barnes

After finishing my Undergraduate degree at the University of Southampton, I completed a graduate placement in the Student Welcome team and started work in the International Office.

Initially working within the International Partnerships Team, I then joined the Study Abroad and Exchange Team. I am now the Head of Global Mobility responsible for overseeing study abroad, student exchange, summer school and short term opportunities for students at Southampton.

Rachel Gover

Inspired by my own year abroad in Canada, I have held several roles within study abroad and exchange teams. Having spent several years at University of East Anglia (UEA), I joined SOAS University of London in 2021 as the Study Abroad Officer.

Recently I have been appointed SOAS’ Head of Study Abroad and Short Courses, with a focus on developing and expanding our study abroad offerings.

Koray Subasi

I am the Global Mobility and Engagement Manager at Oxford Brookes University. Prior to this role, I worked at the Ministry of National Education in Turkey for 7 years, in the role of General Coordinator for the UK in the Government Study Abroad Programme.

As a Committee Member at Butex, I hope to contribute to its mission to shape the future of international education.

Katie England

As the Partnerships Officer at the University of Leeds, I oversee our portfolio of study abroad and exchange agreements, as well as managing relationships with our wonderful worldwide partners.

I first joined the world of Study Abroad in early 2023, and prior to this my background was in property, with a degree in Real Estate, and 8+ years spent working in student accommodation, managing a variety of residences across the North of England.

Sarah Bradley

I have been working in international higher education for more than 20 years at Sheffield Hallam University. I’m a languages graduate and worked in France as part of my degree which has inspired a love for student exchanges.

In my current role as Global Partnerships Manager I lead the delivery of Sheffield Hallam’s student mobility processes including oversight of our Turing funding and management of our global partner network.

Paul Wood

In my position as Global Experiences Manager, I oversee all our short and long-term mobility opportunities for both inbound and outbound students.

I originally started at Lancaster in 2018, working on projects within the UK Recruitment and Widening Participation teams, before joining the Global Experiences team in November 2021 to manage our outbound Study Abroad programme.

Colette McGowan

I have worked in the field of international education for around 25 years, beginning my career at the University of Abertay as International Recruitment Officer.

I joined the University of Glasgow in 1998 as the incoming study abroad officer and progressed to managing the inbound and outbound exchange programme. In my current role as Study Abroad Partnerships Manager I focus on development, recruitment, agreements and partnership liaison.

Lisa Beare

As the Deputy Head of Global Opportunities at the University of Leeds, I oversee the University’s incoming and outgoing global opportunities, our Turing Scheme project, and exchange and study abroad partnerships.

With over 14 years of experience at the University, I have dedicated the majority of my career to global mobility, focusing on creating and enhancing international experiences for students.

Ian Fielding

I have over 25 years’ experience of working with international students and international programs with a strong focus on recruitment and marketing.

The second half of my career to date has been focused specifically on summer and short course programs and more recently moving into development of intercultural programming, including Global Classrooms, including COIL and Virtual Exchange.

Express your interest to join our committee

Inspired by their commitment? You could play a pivotal role in advancing international education—your experience and insight could be the next catalyst for change.