A soon-to-be-graduate has presented his research into gambling marketing on an international stage. 

Conor Heath, 31, from Shrewsbury, worked as a Research Assistant, alongside his lecturer Dr Jamie Torrance, during his time studying for his BSc Applied Psychology at University Centre Shrewsbury. 

His research findings led him to give a presentation at one of the world’s most prestigious gambling conferences, Current Advances in Gambling Research Conference (CAGR) 2023.  

Conor said: “The research I conducted with Dr Torrance involved a frequency analysis of gambling, cryptocurrency and financial trading marketing in Premier League football. The findings indicated that marketing for these products is very prevalent. The English Premier League has recently announced a ban on gambling shirt-front sponsorship. However, our study demonstrated that the most popular location of gambling marketing is pitch-side hoardings. Therefore, we argue that the Premier League ban will be largely ineffective.  

“I presented these findings at the Current Advances in Gambling Research (CAGR) conference which was very daunting as an undergraduate. However, my presentation was well received and it actually led to an article about our research in The Guardian newspaper.” 

Conor balanced his work as a Research Assistant alongside his studies citing good time management as the key to his success. 

He added: “I managed my time effectively through weekly meetings with Dr Torrance where targets were set. We had quite an intensive project on our hands that required a lot of time-consuming data collection and having clear weekly goals to work towards really helped to break the project down into digestible chunks. Being efficient and timely was of great importance as the research related to current gambling policy, which is forever changing.” 

Conor decided to study Applied Psychology at UCS as the course content matched his interests – Cognitive neuroscience, videogames and health promotion – and he explored these topics in his dissertation. He received an exceptional overall grade of 79% in his programme – the highest ever awarded at UCS in Applied Psychology. 

He is considering a career in the video game industry or a Master’s degree in the future. 

He added: “UCS has allowed me to achieve the above accomplishments due to the interesting and useful program, helpful lecturers, and beneficial opportunities provided to students.” 

Dr Jamie Torrance said: “Conor’s recent achievements are fantastic and are indicative of his hard work and determination. Working with him on this impactful project has been a real pleasure. Here at UCS Applied Psychology we make every effort in encouraging students to develop their skills and produce great research. Conor is a shining example of our commitment to working alongside students as partners and I’ve no doubt he will continue in his achievements moving forward.”