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New Chancellor Mike Soutar will also be formally installed at the ceremony on Friday 27 November
Two leading figures from the worlds of business and public health will receive honorary degrees from Abertay University at its Winter Graduation ceremony later this month.
Sandy Begbie CBE FRSE, Chief Executive of Scottish Financial Enterprise, and Professor Mike Kelly, Senior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at the University of Cambridge, will be recognised at the ceremony at Caird Hall, Dundee, on Friday 27 November 2026.
The occasion will also mark the formal installation of Dundee-born entrepreneur, business leader and author Mike Soutar as Chancellor of Abertay University, following the announcement of his appointment in October. As Chancellor, he will serve as the University’s ceremonial head and ambassador and will preside over graduation ceremonies.
Sandy Begbie has served as Chief Executive of Scottish Financial Enterprise since October 2020 and has held senior leadership and transformation roles across some of the UK’s major financial organisations, including Standard Life, Tesco Bank, Aegon, ScottishPower and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
He led the development of the Scottish Government’s Young Person’s Guarantee and holds a number of roles focused on improving opportunities for young people, including chairing Developing the Young Workforce and Place2Be Scotland. He was awarded a CBE in 2018 for services to business and social inclusion and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2023.
Professor Mike Kelly is Senior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at the University of Cambridge. Educated at the Universities of York, Leicester and Dundee, he began his research career as a lecturer in the Department of Business Studies at the then Dundee College of Technology, following his Master’s degree at Leicester.
From 2005 until his retirement from the NHS in 2014, he was Director of the Centre for Public Health at NICE, where he led teams producing public health guidelines. He also directed the methodology work stream for the World Health Organisation’s Commission on the Social Determinants of Health from 2005 to 2007 and has advised parliamentary committees on public health issues.
He continues to research and write on health inequalities, community health and the relationship between evidence and policy. In 2010, he received the Faculty of Public Health’s Alwyn Smith Prize for his work on cardiovascular disease and alcohol misuse prevention.
Professor Liz Bacon, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Abertay University, said:
Graduation is always a very special occasion for our University community and I am delighted that we will be recognising Sandy and Mike alongside our graduating students at the end of November.
Both have made significant contributions within their respective fields over many years, while their careers also demonstrate the importance of leadership, innovation and creating opportunities for others. We look forward to welcoming them to Abertay and celebrating their achievements.
This year’s Winter Graduation will be particularly significant as we formally install Mike Soutar as our new Chancellor. Mike has a strong connection to Dundee and shares Abertay’s commitment to opportunity, innovation and real-world impact, and we are very pleased that he will begin this new chapter with the University alongside our graduating students.
Mike Soutar was announced as Abertay’s new Chancellor on 1 October. Born in Dundee, he began his career with DC Thomson before going on to lead major UK media brands and co-found Shortlist Media, publisher of ShortList and Stylist. He currently serves on the UK Government’s Board of Trade and the board of V&A Dundee and is also known to television audiences as one of Lord Sugar’s interviewers on BBC’s The Apprentice.
As Chancellor, Mike Soutar succeeds Professor Alice Brown and will support the University as a figurehead and ambassador, helping to champion Abertay’s students, staff and engagement with partners across industry, academia and government.
