Derfel Owen is Registrar & Director of Education Services at LSHTM. He leads education services and contributes to the School’s Education Strategy, working with academic colleagues to strengthen quality, student experience, and governance across LSHTM’s global programmes.

Derfel has over twenty years’ leadership experience in UK higher education. Before joining LSHTM in 2023, he held senior posts at University College London (UCL), including Director of Change and Improvement and Director of Academic and Education Services, where he oversaw student policy, governance, quality assurance and enhancement. He has also worked at the University of Exeter and with the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), giving him broad sector-wide expertise.

A regular contributor to debates on regulation and quality, he delivered the opening address at the 2024 European Quality Assurance Forum. He has also written on the opportunities and risks of AI in higher education, including a recent contribution to the Higher Education Policy Institute.

Derfel is a member of Council at The Architects Association School of Architecture and an external member of the Quality and Standards Committe of the University of Gibraltar.

Alongside his professional work, Derfel is actively involved with the Royal Kennel Club serving on the Club Committee, and in the preservation of the English Toy Terrier (Black & Tan) and serves as Chair of the breed’s Judges’ Sub-Committee.