Announcing the 2026 cohort of BNA Scholars
The British Neuroscience Association (BNA) is thrilled to announce the sixth cohort of students accepted on to the BNA Scholars Programme.
Seven new talented young scientists have sucessfully been awarded a position on this prestigious programme. These awardees represent an exceptional standard of ambition, commitment and community dedication from across neuroscience specialisms, UK institutions, and future neuroscience career intentions.
This Programme was developed in 2020 in consultation with BNA members and other world-leading organisations dedicated to improving equity, diversity and inclusion in neuroscience and associated disciplines. Its purpose is to support the neuroscience careers of young scientists from currently under-represented backgrounds, and build a supportive network both within the discipline and within the BNA to offer lasting community and connection even beyond the Programme's three year cycle.
I am motivated by initiatives that actively dismantle barriers and reinvest in the next generation. I see the BNA Scholars Programme not only as a source of personal development, but as a platform through which I can contribute to a more inclusive, supportive, and representative neuroscience community, amplifying its impact well beyond my own career.
Now entering its sixth year, the Programme offers a unique blend of mentoring, professional development, and community support to help these talented young people to articulate, attain and excel in the neuroscience career goals that they have the ambition and academic ability to achieve. Through structured guidance from experienced mentors, access to events, training and research presentation opportunties, and connection with a thriving BNA network through sponsored BNA membership, Scholars gain the tools, confidence, and community to grow and succeed in neuroscience.
We’d like to again offer huge thanks to our valued Supporters who continue to provide diverse career development opportunities as well as vital funding.
Congratulations to all our successful applicants. Please join us in welcoming our new BNA Scholars:
Alsadeg Bilal
Alsadeg Bilal is a CRUK-funded MB-PhD candidate at the University of Edinburgh, based in the Brennan Lab within the Translational Neurosurgery Division. His research focuses on interrogating the cancer–neuro–immune axis in glioma, with particular emphasis on human-relevant experimental systems. Alongside his doctoral work, Alsadeg is a member of the Edinburgh Human Brain Tissue Cluster, where he contributes to the development of living human tissue platforms to study neurological disease. His research has led to awards, presentations, and publications. Alsadeg is also a co-founder and trustee of the Scottish Universities Neurological Society, where he works with students, clinicians, and researchers to expand access to high-quality training and teaching in neurological research across Scotland.
Ben Carre
Ben has secured a place on the Precision Medicine Doctoral Training Programme (iCASE studentship), starting in September 2026, at the University of Edinburgh in Prof. Nathalie Rochefort’s lab, where he is currently working as a research assistant, aiding with data collection of head-fixed mice in a virtual environment, and developing a preprocessing pipeline for automated cell segmentation with Cellpose for calcium imaging data. His PhD will focus on the cellular and circuit-level mechanisms that underpin impaired visual processing in a mouse model of SYNGAP1-related disorders, which include autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities and epilepsy. In this PhD, he is especially excited to be using a high resolution, minimally invasive imaging technique (hair-thin microendoscopes, developed by DeepEn) to record and manipulate deep brain areas in vivo, such as the locus coeruleus, which have been inaccessible to more conventional imaging techniques.
Ben graduated from the University of Bristol with a BSc (Hons) in Biomedical Sciences and from the University of Edinburgh with an MSc in Human Cognitive Neuropsychology. He won the Highly Commended Dissertation Award from the School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences for his MSc thesis, supervised by Dr Freddy Kamps, which investigated the neural basis of visually guided navigation using human fMRI data.
Dominika Biel
Dominika is currently completing her BSc in Biochemistry at Royal Holloway, investigating the antidepressant potential of the psychoplastogen Psilocybin, through a systematic review and meta-analysis dissertation project. Her research interest lies within molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neuroplasticity to better understand how maladaptive circuitry contributes to the occurrence of mental disorders.
Previously working as a student intern at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (Lancaster lab), her research focused on generating cerebral organoids from engineered human pluripotent stem cells to investigate the efficacy of a silencing-resistant expression construct. This project contributed to the progression of disease modelling through a 3D model of human brain development.
Beyond academics, her commitment to psychiatric wellbeing extends through volunteering and part-time roles that focus on community support, acting as the current School Representative (Life Sciences & the Environment).
Dominika is looking forward to undertaking an MPhil in Biological Sciences, joining the Ren Lab (MRC LMB, Neurobiology division) this October, embedding her research focus within serotonergic circuitry.
Fiona Chan
Fiona Chan is a final-year BSc Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology student at the University of Manchester within the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health. She has previously been a member of the British Neuroscience Association and is delighted to now join the BNA Scholars Programme.
Her final-year research project investigates neuroinflammation following intracerebral haemorrhage using larval zebrafish models, with a focus on the role of microglia and macrophages in haematoma clearance. Her research interests include neuropharmacology, neuroinflammation and the cellular mechanisms underlying neurological disease.
Alongside her studies, Fiona has served as a course representative for two years, and was awarded the Silver Manchester Leadership Award in recognition of her leadership and engagement within the university community. She is also committed to public engagement with science, having led and delivered medical workshops for secondary school students with MCS Projects Ltd., and volunteered with the Volunteering Outreach for Science and Engineering society to run science workshops for primary school students across Greater Manchester. Through these experiences, she has developed a motivation to improve access to science.
Following graduation, Fiona hopes to gain further experience in neuroscience whilst exploring different research pathways before potentially pursuing doctoral study. Through the BNA Scholars Programme, she is looking forward to engaging with the neuroscience community and contributing to making neuroscience more accessible to wider audiences.
Gabriel Gibson
Gabriel Gibson is a BBSRC funded PhD student at the University of Nottingham, supervised by Dr. Tobias Bast, Prof. Stephen Jackson, and Dr. Mairi Houlgreave. He previously completed a BSc (Hons) Neuroscience at the University of Lancashire (ULan) with his dissertation project investigating FOXP2 expression in the globus pallidus and amygdala of the BTBR mouse model of autism spectrum disorder. During this time, he also worked as a research intern/assistant investigating anxiolytic and anxiogenic responses to pharmacological agents in D.Melanogaster. He continued his studies at ULan with an MSc by Research, supervised by Dr. Martin Clark, focused on parvalbumin interneuron and peri-neuronal net expression in the dorsal striatum of the BTBR mouse model of ASD, through development and between sexes. These experiences have developed Gabriel's interest in neurodevelopment and action control/decision making through the lens of neurodevelopmental conditions.
His current research involves studying insula contributions to the control of tic-like movements and other behaviours relevant to Gilles de la Tourette syndrome. To investigate this, he will combine manipulations of the insula (via intracerebral drug micro-infusions) with behavioural, electrophysiological, and translational neuroimaging studies in rats. The aim of this research is to reveal insula contributions to movement control and other behaviours relevant to Tourette syndrome, informing the development of new treatments including non-invasive neuromodulation approaches.
Outside of the lab, Gabriel has contributed to various science outreach programmes (including the Lancashire Science Festival, TeenTech, and Pint of Science) to share neuroscience research with the public.
Roman Navin
Roman is currently in his final year studying BSc Neuroscience at Middlesex University. Through his time there, he's developed a distinct interest in drug development, for both neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders. He plans to further such interests by undertaking MSc Translational Neuroscience at Imperial College, aiming to develop the relevant skills to undertake doctoral studies.
Suzan Elsheikh
Suzan Elsheikh is a BBSRC NEEDL-funded PhD researcher at Teesside University exploring how healthy ageing influences the molecular and cellular processes that support memory. She completed her MSc in Biomedical Sciences in 2022 at Teesside University before working for nearly two years as a Research Assistant at the National Horizons Centre, where she investigated molecular mechanisms involved in Parkinson’s disease, Dementia with Lewy bodies, and Alzheimer’s disease. She now applies her experience to study age-related changes in memory pathways. Suzan aims to build a research theme focused on linking biomarkers and memory in healthy ageing and neurodegenerative diseases.
