Jenny Higham is the first woman to serve as Principal of St George's, University of London, which she took up appointment in November 2015. St George's, University of London obtained University status in June 2022, meaning Professor Higham's position is now Vice-Chancellor. She was the first female to be elected chair of the Medical Schools Council (August 2016). Higham is also an honorary consultant at St. Georges NHS Foundation Trust and a visiting professor at the Imperial College London. Higham was born in Warrington and also lived in Gloucestershire and Norfolk during her childhood. She undertook her secondary education at Thorpe Grammar School, Norwich. Career Higham studied for her MBBS at University College London, graduating in 1985 with distinction. She received the Atchison Scholarship, which is an annual award presented by UCL to the student who showed the best work and greatest proficiency of the medicine graduating year. She undertook specialist training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, obtaining her MRCOG in 1992 and FRCOG in 2005. In addition to clinical training, she worked towards a research higher degree, investigating the clinical association and treatment of menorrhagia, awarded by the University of London in 1993. She remains clinically active as a gynaecologist. Higham has previously held senior positions at Imperial College London, including head of undergraduate medicine (2006–2009) and vice dean for institutional affairs and director of education for the Faculty of Medicine. She led on Imperial College London's work to establish the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine in Singapore, a partnership between Nanyang Technological University and Imperial, which opened in 2013. She then served as the school's senior vice-dean from 2013 to 2015. In recognition of her work, she was awarded the Nanyang Education University Gold Award, the Imperial College Medal (2014), and honoured as a Fellow of the Teaching Excellence Academy at Nanyang Technological University (2015). Higham has received “Mentor of the Year” at the Women of the Future [WOF] Awards in 2011 and the Imperial College President and Rector's Award for Outstanding Contribution to Teaching Excellence in 2013. She previously worked at St Mary's (now Imperial College Healthcare Trust), appointed as senior lecturer in obstetrics and gynaecology in 1997. Here, she contributed to the amalgamation of the curricula from the three medical schools (St Mary's, Charing Cross and Westminster) that merged to form the new medical school at Imperial College London. Higham has sat on many boards, including: