Dorothy Byrne was President of Murray Edwards College at Cambridge University for four years. The college remains proudly a college for women, believing its unique identity enables it to champion and promote the interests of girls and women in education and beyond. The college has set up the Murray Edwards Policy Centre for the Wellbeing of Young Women and Girls, established a new Wellbeing Service for its own students and Dorothy has spoken out regularly about the crisis in the mental health of young women and girls. The college is currently undertaking groundbreaking research on young women’s experiences at university.

The college has also highlighted the need to increase the numbers of girls taking physics and maths at A level and the need to increase the percentage of women at university studying physics, computer science, engineering and maths. It is undertaking new forms of outreach to schools to encourage girls to opt for degrees in STEM.

Dorothy was previously the Editor-at-Large and Head of News and Current Affairs at Channel Four Television for nearly 20 years. Programmes she has overseen have won many Emmy, Bafta and Royal Television Society Awards. Dorothy was made a Fellow of The Royal Television Society for her Outstanding Contribution to Television and won the RTS Journalism award for Outstanding Contribution to Television Journalism.

She has won various other personal awards including the Grierson Trustees Award for contribution to documentary, the Women in Film and Television Award for contribution to the medium, and a Scottish BAFTA for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting.