PhD student honoured by Saudi ambassador

PhD student Danya Hashem has received an award of distinction by HRH Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf Al Saud, the Saudi ambassador to the UK, in recognition of the important research she is carrying out at the Dental Institute.

The presentation was held at the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in London on 23 September, the National Day of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. All the awards presented at the ceremony celebrated those postgraduates studying in the UK, across a range of disciplines, who have achieved excellence during their studies.

Danya is in the final year of her PhD in Clinical Dentistry Research and her project investigates ‘Calcium silicate cements used as a therapeutic dentine replacement: in-vitro and in-vivo studies’.

This is the third distinction award Danya has received during her PhD under the supervision of Professors Timothy Watson and Avijit Banerjee within the Division of Biomaterials, Biomimetics & Biophotonics. The previous awards were given by the Saudi Cultural Attache at the Saudi Cultural Bureau.

Commenting on her achievement, Danya said: ‘It is a great honor to receive this award from my country's representatives in the UK. I am very proud and earnestly grateful for the recognition I have received for my research here at King's. The Saudi Government has always continuously appreciated and encouraged its students to excel in their studies abroad at world-renowned universities.

‘This award could not have been achieved without the guidance and excellent supervision of Professors Avijit Banerjee and Tim Watson from whom I have derived the strength to challenge myself and perform better at each stage. I would like to sincerely thank everyone in Biomaterials and Conservative Dentistry for their support and inspiration and for making my PhD so successful.’