Research associate wins prestigious Operational Research Society Doctoral Award
13 February 2025
Dr Elizabeth Williams has been awarded the Operational Research (OR) Society Doctoral Award for 2023 for the doctoral thesis she undertook during her PhD at the School of Mathematics.
Elizabeth’s thesis on ‘linking predictive and prescriptive analytics for modelling healthcare services for frail and elderly patients,’ won from a competitive shortlist of eight finalists.
Reflecting on the achievement, Elizabeth said, “I’m honoured to have received this award. My thesis was focused on developing innovative analytical approaches to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare services for frail and elderly patients. By combining different types of analysis, we can better predict patient needs and plan services more effectively, ensuring the right care is available at the right time."
I would like to thank my supervisors Professor Daniel Gartner and Professor Paul Harper for their incredible support.
This achievement marks a significant milestone for Cardiff University, as PhD students from the school’s OR Group have now won the OR Society Doctoral Award three times in the past 15 years. This award is open to PhD students from universities across the UK.
This success follows in the footsteps of previous Cardiff awardees, including Dr Geraint Palmer, who won in 2018, and Dr Richard Wood, who received the honour in 2011.
Congratulations to Elizabeth on this outstanding achievement, which highlights both her individual dedication and the continued excellence of our school’s operational research community. We can’t wait to see what Elizabeth achieves next!
Elizabeth received the award during The OR Society’s Blackett Lecture on December 5, 2024, at The Royal Society in London.