Chioma Ezegwu

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At the moment

I'm an interdisciplinary social research scientist with an interest in e-learning, higher education research, policy research, behaviour change communication, environmental education and protection. I recently founded a multidisciplinary research and development firm, DevSpring, in Nigeria that focuses on evidence generation for social development, effective policy impact and innovative interventions. In the past seven years, I've played important roles in different research projects funded by the British Council, MacArthur Foundation, UNDP, hte Education Partnership Center, Misean Cara and Population Media Center.

Your time at the University

I specifically chose to study online to enable me to support my young family. The structure of the course and staff support was also very effective and enabled me to pull through two different pregnancies during my study to complete the course, alongside my freelance research profession. The flexibility of the MSc is commendable!

My undergraduate discipline was in biological science but I loved research and investigation right from the start. After my graduation, I had opportunities to work with research teams in diverse research projects funded by such organisations as the British Council and MacArthur Foundation as a field research administrator and research assistant. This directed me to an extant gap and the opportunities in the field of my MSc and broader development sector. I liked the University for its institutional and staff capacity to support research skill development.

While at the University, the structure of the course, the hands-on training, the quality of support I received and diverse students’ development opportunities stood out to me. They contributed to influencing my output, current engagements and impact. They particularly contributed to shaping my social impact project: while studying at the University of Edinburgh, the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) selected and supported my project, Eco-friendly Education, which was inspired by my MSc study.

I specifically chose to study online to enable me to support my young family. The structure of the course and staff support was also very effective and enabled me to pull through two different pregnancies during my study to complete the course, alongside my freelance research profession. The flexibility of the MSc is commendable!

Your experiences since leaving the University

I completed my studies in the second half of 2020 and fully activated my research passion. Besides working with my research team in three different research projects, one of which was funded by the British Council, I recently established a research and development firm, Dev Spring. I am passionate and committed to building the organisation to become one of the top training, research and development institutions in Africa.

Life during Covid-19

My studies were not affected by the Covid-19 pandemic because I studied entirely online and had completed data collection for my research before the pandemic's outbreak. The pandemic temporarily halted physical public activities in Nigeria but public activities retuned to almost normal faster than expected. So, the overall impact of the pandemic on my study and work has been very minimal. 

Alumni Wisdom

The exposure I had from my studies contributed to inspiring me to think out of the box. There are many opportunities studying at the University of Edinburgh that are open to students but each student must be ready to leverage these: build networks, explore the known and launch into the unknown.

Online open days

More information on the upcoming open days for distance learning on 26 and 27 May 2021 can be found here:

Postgraduate open days: online learning

Related links

Digital Education