Dr Stephanie Preston

I started my career working in the travel industry when I worked for Thomson now known as TUI. I then went to work in education and was a business administration apprentice in a local college where I worked in the HR and Finance department and Student Services. I decided I wanted to go to university and I started my academic journey in Teesside, having grown up in and around the area. I was considered a mature student going to university at 21 and I studied a Tourism Management degree followed by a Masters in Human Resource Management. I then spent a few years training to be a teacher and started this journey at Newcastle College. I spent a few years teaching in further education and I was a section leader for Travel, Tourism and Aviation courses. I joined the University of Sunderland in 2014 and since then I have developed into the role of programme leader, module leader, major project supervisor and personal tutor. I teach across all courses that are offered in the Hospitality, Events, Aviation and Tourism Department. 

In 2017 I started a PhD in Business Management at Newcastle Business School in the Department of Human Resource Management and Leadership. I focused this study on a real world working environment and explored the impact of stress and burnout on a large sample of cabin crew employees who were employed across multiple airlines within the UK aviation industry. I completed and obtained this qualification in July 2023. 

Alongside working full time as an academic, I continue to grow and promote relationships with local education providers and industry contacts to enhance both study and research opportunities. I work with many organisations who are linked to the airline and airport industry as well as having work experiences prior to joining academia with TUI UK, The National Trust, Scarborough Council, Redcar and Cleveland College, Teesside Airport and Middlesbrough FC.