This week on SA Voices From the Field, we interviewed Dr. Niamh Nestor, Student Adviser at the Veterinary Sciences Centre, University College Dublin. 

Niamh’s work is focused on student support, primarily on mental health and well-being among veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing students. Niamh’s background is in sociolinguistics, migration, and integration, and her doctoral research focused on Polish children and teenagers who had migrated to Ireland since Poland joined the European Union in 2004. At UCD, Niamh’s work is focused on student support, primarily on mental health and well-being among veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing students.

 She supports the rollout of the HEA National Student Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Framework at UCD. Niamh is an active member of the community life of the university. She runs UCD Purl Jam, the university’s craft/creative group. She co-founded the Veterinary Community Garden on campus. She is also an active member of the UCD Community Choir. Niamh is involved in implementing equality, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in her School and the wider UCD community. She co-chairs the UCD LGBTQI+ EDI committee and the UCD LGBTQI+ Staff Network. She is an active member of the Athena SWAN Committee in her school. She joined this committee because she is deeply committed to challenging injustice, intolerance, and bigotry and to achieving equality, diversity, and inclusion for all. She believes in active allyship and is passionate about fighting against complacency. Rights that have been hard won can be easily lost, and every small thing we do to protect those rights matters. EDI work on higher-level campuses is vital in this regard, and Niamh is particularly interested in empowering and supporting students to continue the fight for equality into the future.

Outside of work, Niamh loves to work in her garden. She has recently joined a dance class and taken up carpentry. She volunteers for Dublin Lesbian Line, teaches piano, and likes to travel. 

Niamh Nestor is on LinkedIn, and also people can get me by email: [email protected]

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