Nicola's background is multi-disciplinary: starting in business management and economics, moving into computing, and finally settling in education. In 2007 she completed a PhD in collaborative game-based learning, combining aspects of game design, interaction design and learning theory. She is passionate about enhancing and rethinking the ways in which teaching, learning and assessment are carried out, particularly in the context of Higher Education, in order to create more equitable and engaging experiences for students. She is particularly interested in the use of active and experiential models of learning and the role of play.