Photographic portrait of Sydney Cotson

Scope and Content

Caption reads ‘Sydney Cotson, BSc, PhD, CCHEM, FRIC, Honorary Fellow of the Polytechnic, 21 November 1986'

Includes the information that he was:

Deputy Director of the Leicester Polytechnic, 1973-1986.

Administrative / Biographical History

Sydney Cotson graduated from the University of Leeds where he was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy for his work researching the chemistry of cancer. He continued this research at the University of London, in the USA and in Moscow, as a Fullbright Fellow

He started his academic life as a lecturer in Chemistry, before becoming Head of Department, and then Assistant Director at the Polytechnic of the South Bank, London. He then joined Leicester Polytechnic in May 1973 as Deputy Director. A role he fulfilled for 13 years, until he took early retirement on the 31st August 1986.

As Deputy Director, he also had roles as the Chairman of the 'Research Committee', he chaired the 'Research Degrees Committee', and chaired the Academic Board's 'Academic Committee'. He was also only the second member from a polytechnic to become a member of the University Grants Committee, from 1983.

Related Material

Biography of his career written on his retirement in the 1985/1986 Leicester Polytehnic Annual Report, reference: D/008/B/013.