Prof Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson is the Pro Vice-Chancellor, Student Life at the University of Melbourne, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (FAHMS) and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia (FASSA).

Sarah’s research seeks to understand relationships between the mind, brain, human behaviour and its disorders, drawing on her expertise as a Cognitive Neuroscientist and Clinical Neuropsychologist. She has pioneered music neuroscience research in Australia, and was Founding Director of Music Mind & Wellbeing, an interdisciplinary initiative linking neuroscience with music and emotional and social wellbeing, fostering research spanning music, science, health and education.

Clinically, she has characterised a new clinical syndrome that arises following the treatment of epilepsy and other chronic disorders, leading to better management of the cognitive, emotional, and social difficulties faced by individuals with neurological disorders. She has established a hospital-based rehabilitation service for epilepsy patients and their families, and a community-based Psychosocial Clinic for patients with functional neurological disorders. Her approach to patient care has been used as a benchmark of best practice (International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Commission Report, 2011), changing clinical practice around the globe.

She is Chair of the ILAE Diagnostic Methods Commission (2017-21) and previous Chair of the ILAE Neuropsychology Task Force (2013-17), where she established the first set of international standards for neuropsychological practice in epilepsy. In the field of Clinical Neuropsychology, Sarah is currently listed in the top 10 most cited researchers on Google Scholar.

Before taking up the role of PVC Student Life in April 2021, Sarah was the Head of School, Psychological Sciences in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne.