Tara Morrison

Lead for New Students

Undergraduate Board of Examiners Convenor

Co-Academic Lead - Skills for Success Framework

Course Organiser for:

• Global Challenges for Business
• Psychological Well-being and Business

Undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation adviser

Tara has worked in Higher Education for a number of years, and has designed, developed and delivered a range of high calibre business-related courses and programmes. Her areas of expertise in leadership, human resource management and organisational behaviour have been important in shaping both undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum at Southampton Solent University, and the University of the Highlands and Islands, before joining the University of Edinburgh Business School.

Tara has carried out a wide range of research projects including collaborating with the University of the Arctic; local and national agencies (Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE); Rural Gateway; Citizens’ Online; Ofcom; Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations; Skills Development Scotland); and charitable trusts (Carnegie UK Trust; The Royal Society of Edinburgh). Tara also ran her own consultancy company, delivering professional management training and development initiatives for a number of prominent organisations, including Zurich Insurance Group, and Newsquest Media Group.

Tara’s pedagogical interests have been in the development of effective online learning environments. She co-authored the book entitled: ‘E-learning and Social Networking Handbook, 2nd ed’ (2013); and has presented at international conferences on the importance of creating ‘learning spaces’ within online and blended modules, and understanding the importance of the social presence.

Tara has a particular interest in enhancing the student experience through embedding key skills within teaching, learning and assessment strategies, surfacing these through effective teaching practice, in order that students can recognise and articulate their development when they graduate. Tara has been a key contributor in the design and development of the University of Edinburgh’s Skills for Success Framework: https://graduate-attributes.ed.ac.uk/what-is-the-skills-for-success-framework

Tara is also passionate about enhancing well-being. She designed and developed her option course – Psychological Well-being and Business, with the help of the Business School’s Student Development Team, in order to help students to thrive at university, and provide them with the skills to aid companies to become ‘healthier’. She is a member of the Edinburgh Lead Well Community of Practice; and, as a qualified coach she also works with others within the school to embed a coaching culture to support students in identifying and developing their strengths.

Psychological well-being

Skills development in higher education