Iain MacDonald | University of Cumbria

Iain was previously a diagnostic radiographer at the Leicester Royal Infirmary and Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham. He then took positions as a research radiographer in MRI at the Universities of Nottingham and Sheffield, gaining experience in neuroimaging (adult and paediatric), cardiac and imaging of pulmonary hypertension. Alongside the research, he also worked in the MRI units of acute NHS hospitals. He completed his MSc in medical imaging during this time. He maintains professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as a diagnostic radiographer.

He is currently programme lead for postgraduate studies in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at the University of Cumbria. His other teaching responsibilities are to undergraduates on the BSc programmes in diagnostic radiography at  the Carlisle and Lancaster campuses. Iain also works with apprenticeship students on the programmes offered by the department – the integrated degree and the assistant practitioner programme. Iain is personal tutor to both undergraduate and postgraduate students, and is link lecturer to medical imaging departments in NHS trusts in Cumbria.  

Iain is a member of the executive committee of the Assessment in Higher Education network. This involves helping organise and facilitate an international conference, based in the UK.

PhD, Technology enhanced learning, University of Lancaster
MSc, Medical Diagnostic Imaging, UCSM/University of Lancaster
Postgraduate certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, University of Cumbria
BSc (Hons), Diagnostic Radiography, University of Derby

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

HCPC registered diagnostic radiographer (RA 34825)

My research in education involves novel collaborative assessment using Web 2.0 based platforms, with a particular focus on the influence of student approaches to learning in undergraduates. I am also involved in the development of the virtual learning environment at the university, Blackboard. A current focus is on the development and implementation of online learning particularly focussed on the workplace using online technologies in radiation science.

In medical imaging I am particularly interested in:

Cardiovascular MRI

Physical science of medical imaging (radiation physics, x-ray equipment, digital imaging)

Anatomy and pathology combined with the application of imaging technology

I supervise MSc students in their research into magnetic resonance imaging and its application.

MacDonald I., 2024 Patient Care in MRI, In: Chau, S., Hyde, E., Knapp, K., & Hayre, C. (Eds.). Person-Centred Care in Radiology: International Perspectives on High-Quality Care (1st ed.). CRC Press.

MacDonald I.M. , 2022. Radiobiology. In: Chau, M. and Hayre, C., eds . Computed Tomography A Primer for Radiographers.: CRC Press (Taylor and Francis).

MacDonald, I.M. (2020). 12.  Education Matters in Radiography. In Hayre, C. and Cox, W. (Ed.) General Radiography: Principles and Practices, pp.219-232. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA. 

MacDonald, I.M. (2020) Outcomes for healthcare undergraduates using wikis and MS PowerPoint in computer supported collaborative assessment: the influence of student approaches to learning.  

INTED 2020: 14th annual International Technology, Education and Development Conference, Valencia, Spain, 1st-3rd March 2020. 

MacDonald, I (2019) Adopt and adapt: undergraduate diagnostic radiography student responses to technology enhanced collaborative assessment using online wiki and verbal MS PowerPoint presentations.  United Kingdom Imaging and Oncology Congress (UKIO), 10-12 June 2019, ACC, Liverpool, UK. 

MacDonald, I (2018) Comparison of response to feedback given to undergraduates in two collaborative formative assessments: wiki and oral presentations. International Assessment in Higher Education Conference, June 2019, Manchester, UK.

External examiner appointments:

I am an external examiner at two institutions for their undergraduate programmes in diagnostic radiography – one in England and the other in Singapore.