Rola Ajjawi, BAppSci(Physiotherapy)Hons, PhD
Scientist
Rola Ajjawi is Professor of Medical Education in the Department of Surgery and Scientist and Associate Director (Research) at the Centre for Health Education Scholarship. She studied physiotherapy and became a clinical teacher before completing a PhD in health professions education examining how clinical reasoning is learned and communicated in practice. Her research focuses on work-based learning seeking to optimize clinical learning environments. She leads several programs of research into feedback and workplace learning cultures, student failure and success, and latterly belonging, emotions and well-being in health professions education. Her research has attracted over $3.5Million in funding and is well cited with her latest edited volume published in 2023: Ajjawi R, Tai J, Boud D, and Jorre de St Jorre T. (Eds.) Assessment for Inclusion in Higher Education: Promoting Equity and Social Justice (Routledge, open access). She was awarded a Karolinska Institutet Fellowship in 2021 for excellence in medical education research. Rola is Chair of the International Association for Health Professions Education (AMEE) Research Committee and Editor-In-Chief of the journal Medical Education.
Research Interests
Rola’s research seeks to create learning environments that support health professional trainees to succeed. I am interested particularly in the messiness of practice and workplace learning, examining how supervision can be embedded into clinical practices, how feedback processes unfold, and how to create equitable and inclusive workplace learning environments. Her research is theoretical leaning into sociocultural and sociomaterial theories as well as being qualitative and highly relational in order to reveal the taken for granted assumptions about and hidden complexities of practice. Another important theme in her work is extending understanding of qualitative methodologies that unravel the complexities of practice.
Publication Highlights
Ajjawi R, Eva K, Scott I. (2025) Reflections on four theoretical perspectives of belonging. Advances in Health Sciences Education. doi:10.1007/s10459-025-10476-x
Bearman M, Hilder J, Castanelli D. et al. (2025) Feedback with feelings: the human complexity of expressing judgements about performance. Advances in Health Sciences Education. doi: 10.1007/s10459-025-10477-w
Martinussen M, Jain N R, Tai J, Bearman M, & Ajjawi R. (2025). A critical review of psychological safety in clinical learning environments. Medical Teacher, 47(12), 1884–1894. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2025.2551255
Luong V, Cameron P, Brown MEL, Burm S, Fletcher J, Kits O, MacLeod A, Parker R, Ajjawi R. (2025) The Struggle to Belong for Underrepresented Medical Students: A Narrative Review. Perspectives on Medical Education. 14(1): 826–836. doi: 10.5334/pme.1873
Bearman M, Ajjawi R. (2025). Artificial intelligence and gender equity: An integrated approach for health professional education. Medical Education. 59(10): 1049-1057. doi:10.1111/medu.15657
Ajjawi R, Bearman M, O’Brien B, Luong V, & Varpio L. Researching lived experience in health professional education. Medical Education. 58(9): 1049-1057. doi: 10.1111/medu.15361
Presentation Highlights
Nov 2025: Feeling feedback: the role of emotions in feedback at the 7th LEARN symposium, Lifelong Learning, Education and Assessment Research Network, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
Sept 2025: The emotional work of feedback, The Norman Lecture in Education Research, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
July 2025: The role of emotions in feedback and its avoidance, Closing Plenary ASME: The A’s of ASME Conference, Edinburgh, UK
April 2025, Building effective feedback conversations in clinical practice, UCSF Annual Education Showcase, California, USA
August 2023: Enabling Assessment for Inclusion in Health Professions Education’ Closing plenary AMEE Conference, Glasgow, UK.
Awards
- Teaching in Higher Education Editors’ Choice Award 2024 for article: Ajjawi R, Gravett K, & O’Shea, S. (2023). The politics of student belonging: Identity and purpose. Teaching in Higher Education. doi:10.1080/13562517.2023.2280261
- Karolinska Institutet Fellowship for Excellence in Research in Medical Education (KIPRIME), Karolinska Institutet, Sweden 2021
- Australian National Research Field leader in Science & Engineering Education 2020 and 2021
Current Grants
- Ajjawi R (co-PI), Sukhera J (co-PI), Bearman M, Molloy L. Exploring the vulnerability-credibility tension in feedback conversations: A social imaginaries lens. Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. (2025-2027; $36,863)
- Gavarkovs A, Lynn B, Eva K, Petrella R, Ajjawi R, Brydges R, Curran V. Energizing Team Learning: A Case Study of Motivation in Primary Healthcare Teams. SSHRC Insight Development Grant. (2025-2027; $93,760)
- DiLalla V, Ajjawi R, Ingledew P. Strengthening the Developmental Purpose of Assessment: Exploring Trainee Perceptions of Competence Committee Feedback and Decision-Making. Medical Council of Canada. (2025-2026; $22,500)