Dr Sophia Drakopoulou

Research institute
Name	Dr Sophia Drakopoulou
Job title	"Senior Lecturer in Media, Culture and Communication"
Primary appointment	Design & Creative Practice
Email address	s.drakopoulou@mdx.ac.uk
ORCID	https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5733-4381
Contact category	Academic staff

Biography

Biography

Dr Sophia Drakopoulou is Senior Lecturer in Media, Culture and Communication at Middlesex University; Programme Leader for MA Digital Content Creation, MA UI/UX Design, and MA Graphic Design and Creative AI; Link Tutor for AKTO Athens; and Co-Chair of REF Unit of Assessment 34. She is also Convenor of the New Technologies and AI Research Cluster, a member of the ARXAI AI Research Group, and a co-founder of Cybersalon. Her work brings together digital culture, creative practice, higher education and the design of AI agents.

Sophia has over 20 years’ experience in higher education and the creative industries. As a former Acting Head of Department and Director of Programmes, she led academic teams and curriculum development across undergraduate and postgraduate media programmes. She holds a PhD from Goldsmiths, University of London, examining the spatial and temporal qualities of mobile media, and is a co-founder of Cybersalon, a think tank exploring digital culture and its social implications.

Sophia designs and builds institution-specific AI agents that combine academic expertise, institutional knowledge and ethical oversight. Her portfolio includes agents used within the institution, alongside tools developed for research, piloting and future deployment. The RKE Insights Agent, designed and built by Dr Sophia Drakopoulou, is the first AI agent to be deployed university-wide at Middlesex University.

Her agents include Help ACI, supporting curriculum development; the MIF/PIF Assistant, supporting module and programme documentation; the Programme Business Case Assistant; and the SEO/MA Marketing Agent, developed with Digital Marketing and SEO colleagues to support promotional materials for new postgraduate programmes. Her research-focused tools include the REF Chair Assistant, REF Portfolio Builder and Early Career Researcher Assistant. The RKE Insights Agent identifies aggregate research and knowledge exchange priorities.

The Bernie Grant Digital Archive is a commercial AI project to which Sophia contributes project management, UI/UX design and research-bid development, supporting AI-enabled access to archival materials. She also undertakes consultancy on the use of AI for the REF, has undertaken a Kortext IQ pilot, and contributes to institutional AI governance.

Her wider practice includes the NHS England-funded Stories Behind the Screens project, combining action research, digital storytelling, website design and art direction.

Teaching

Sophia's teaching interests include UI/UX design; creative applications of generative AI; creative media content creation using Adobe Creative Suite; audience research, strategy and analytics; immersive space design and immersive technologies; and social media content creation, audience reach and consultancy.

Her teaching connects critical understanding of digital technologies with creative production, audience research, strategy and professional practice. She teaches the following modules:

DID2003 – Audience, Strategy and Business Metrics: Core UI/UX research and design, connecting audience insights and user needs with design strategy.

DID3003 – Project Management and Innovation: Project management for immersive experiences and applications of emerging technologies, with a focus on design and visual development.

APB3000 – AI, Digital Communications and Marketing: Exploring AI in digital communications and marketing through practical experimentation and critical consideration of its ethical and professional implications.

DES4003 – Social Media Analytics: Interpreting social media data to understand audiences, evaluate content performance and inform strategic decisions.

DMC3200 – Social Media Management: Developing and managing social media activity, including content planning, audience engagement and performance evaluation.

DMC3003 – New Technology and Innovation: Exploring emerging technologies through critical enquiry, experimentation, prototyping and the development of creative applications and experiences.

Sophia also supervises undergraduate and postgraduate projects and doctoral research.

Supervision

Employment

Education and qualifications

Grants

Projects

Developing a Humanities-Informed Framework for AI-Assisted REF Self-Evaluation and Simulation

Prizes and Awards

Impact

Behind the screens: stories from the Covid vaccination programme in North Central London

External activities

Activity Title

Extensive Experience as External Examiner

Role

External examiner

Organisation/Institution

Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education

Description

BA Media Production (Film Directing / Journalism) AKMI Metropolitan College, Athens. Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. 2017-2021.

BA Media and Culture. University of Roehampton 2016 -2020.

MA Digital Media Management; MA Web Design and Development; MA Digital Media. Department of Film, Media and Cultural Studies, School of Arts. Birkbeck, University of London. External Specialist Report May 2016.

BA Media and Communication. Ealing School of Art, Design and Media, University of West London. Validation June 2015.

BA Digital Media Metropolitan University. 2010-2014.

Date from

01 Sept 2010

Date to

01 Sept 2021

Underpinning research

Research outputs

Interprofessional and inter-organisational collaboration in the COVID-19 vaccination programme: lessons from North Central London

Allan, H., Drakopoulou, S., Willis, M., Traynor, M., Scott, D., Suthers, F., Colfer, K. and Levene, D. 2025. Interprofessional and inter-organisational collaboration in the COVID-19 vaccination programme: lessons from North Central London. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 81 (10), pp. 6071-6985. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.16775

Launch event A2 poster - Behind the screens: stories from the Covid-19 vaccination programme in North Central London

Drakopoulou, S. and Allan, H. 2023. Launch event A2 poster - Behind the screens: stories from the Covid-19 vaccination programme in North Central London. London, UK NHS.

Behind the screens: stories from the Covid vaccination programme in North Central London

Drakopoulou, S. and Allan, H. 2023. Behind the screens: stories from the Covid vaccination programme in North Central London. NHS.

The cultures of the now and technologies of immediacy

Drakopoulou, S. 2019. The cultures of the now and technologies of immediacy. Mediating Presents: Producing ‘the Now’ in Contemporary Digital Culture. Goldsmiths, University of London, UK 16 - 17 May 2019

Open data today and tomorrow: the present challenges and possibilities of open data

Drakopoulou, S. 2018. Open data today and tomorrow: the present challenges and possibilities of open data. International Journal of Electronic Governance. 10 (2), pp. 151-171. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJEG.2018.093836

Researching YouTube

Arthurs, J., Drakopoulou, S. and Gandini, A. 2018. Researching YouTube. Convergence. 24 (1), pp. 3-15. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354856517737222

"We can remember it for you": location, memory, and commodification in social networking sites

Drakopoulou, S. 2017. "We can remember it for you": location, memory, and commodification in social networking sites. SAGE Open. 7 (3), pp. 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017712026

The Digital Liberties cross-party campaign

Drakopoulou, S. 2017. The Digital Liberties cross-party campaign. in: Shaw, J. and Graham, M. (ed.) Our Digital Rights to the City UK Meatspace Press. pp. 28-29

The campaign for digital citizenship

Drakopoulou, S., Grossman, W. and Moore, P. 2016. The campaign for digital citizenship. Soundings. 2016 (62), pp. 107-120.

Data and the city – accessibility and openness. a cybersalon paper on open data

Drakopoulou, S., Pascoe, E., Greenaway, B., Moulding, J., Grossman, W. and Black, I. 2015. Data and the city – accessibility and openness. a cybersalon paper on open data. Theona, I. and Charitos, D. (ed.) 3rd International Biennial Conference Hybrid City 2015 Data to the People. Athens, Greece 17 - 19 Sep 2015 Athens, Greece University Research Institute of Applied Communication (URIAC), University of Athens. pp. 111-116

The ‘lived now’. Observing the changes in the spatiotemporal experience of everyday life through the use of ICTs.

Drakopoulou, S. 2013. The ‘lived now’. Observing the changes in the spatiotemporal experience of everyday life through the use of ICTs. Theorising the Web. The Graduate Center (CUNY) NYC

Urban Praxis Athens 2012. An analysis and exploration of locative-media projects made in Athens, based on Lefebvre’s lived experience analysis and rhythmology method.

Drakopoulou, S. 2014. Urban Praxis Athens 2012. An analysis and exploration of locative-media projects made in Athens, based on Lefebvre’s lived experience analysis and rhythmology method. in: Geiger, J., Shepard, M. and Khan, O. (ed.) MediaCities: Proceedings University of Buffalo The State University of New York. pp. 132-139

Pixels, bits and urban space. Observing the intersection of the space of information with actual physical space in augmented reality smartphone applications and peripheral vision displays

Drakopoulou, S. 2013. Pixels, bits and urban space. Observing the intersection of the space of information with actual physical space in augmented reality smartphone applications and peripheral vision displays. First Monday. 18 (11). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v18i11.4965

Observing rhythms of everyday life in content made by smart devices and uploaded on electronic maps and social media. A methodological enquiry.

Drakopoulou, S. 2013. Observing rhythms of everyday life in content made by smart devices and uploaded on electronic maps and social media. A methodological enquiry. Spectacular /Ordinary /Contested Media City. University of Helsinki

Athens as a hybrid city. An analysis and exploration of the rhythms of everyday life and the lived experience as documented in locative-mediated projects produced in Athens.

Drakopoulou, S. 2013. Athens as a hybrid city. An analysis and exploration of the rhythms of everyday life and the lived experience as documented in locative-mediated projects produced in Athens. in: Subtle Revolutions. Proceedings of the 2nd International Hybrid City Conference. Athens University Research Institute Of Applied Communication. pp. 85-91

Spatiotemporal experience through the use of ICTs and smart devices: a comparative analysis of the theories of Bergson and Lefebvre

Drakopoulou, S. 2012. Spatiotemporal experience through the use of ICTs and smart devices: a comparative analysis of the theories of Bergson and Lefebvre. Space: From Theory to Practice. Birkbeck School of Arts

User generated content: an exploration and analysis of the temporal qualities and elements of authenticity and immediacy in UGC

Drakopoulou, S. 2011. User generated content: an exploration and analysis of the temporal qualities and elements of authenticity and immediacy in UGC. in: Conference proceedings. First International Conference on Emerging Research Paradigms in Business and Social Sciences. 22 Nov 2011 - 24 Nov 201. Hotel Pullman Dubai Mall of the Emirates, United Arab Emirates Dubai, United Arab Emirates Middlesex University.

Research Impact