ICE welcomes new Senior Teaching Associate in Philosophy: Dr Milena Ivanova

 The Institute of Continuing Education is delighted to welcome Dr Milena Ivanova to the team, as new Senior Teaching Associate in Philosophy. Milena shares a bit about her background and her involvement in the undergraduate portfolio, as well as her passions.

Milena is a philosopher of science with a primary interest in the relationship between science and art, how aesthetic values influence scientific pursuits, and the role of creativity and the imagination in scientific discoveries. She has also contributed to the scientific realism literature, the development of geometric conventionalism and metametaphysics debates.

Milena shared: “I studied History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Athens, before moving to the University of Bristol to work on a PhD exploring the development of structural realism and conventionalism. There, I was awarded a fellowship from the British Society for Philosophy of Science and a Royal Institute for Philosophy Jacobsen Fellowship.  Before joining Cambridge, I lectured at the History and Philosophy of Science Unit at the University of Sydney and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Munich Centre for Mathematical Philosophy.

I am the author of Duhem and Holism, published by Cambridge University Press in 2021, a book in which I explore philosophical questions regarding how we gain knowledge about the world though experiments. I am also the co-editor of The Aesthetics of Science: Beauty, Imagination and Understanding, published by Routledge in 2020, and The Aesthetics of Scientific Experiments, published by Routledge in 2023. I am currently working on a monograph titled Beautiful Science. I also write public philosophy on topics concerning science, art and AI, and one of my popular articles titled 'The Beautiful Experiment'  was awarded the American Philosophical Association's 2022 Public Philosophy Op-Ed prize.”

At ICE, Milena will be directing the Undergraduate Certificate in Philosophy, developing and leading the courses on offer.

She said: “I am excited to teach so many diverse topics in philosophy and get students to think how philosophy can help us see contemporary questions our societies face differently. I am particularly excited to teach on topics that fascinate me and occupy my research.

“Growing up, I saw first-hand the impact continuing education had on my family and knew early on in my career I would want to contribute to this very special journey students undertake. I thoroughly enjoy the unique interactions and wealth of ideas people bring to continuing education and getting students to work as a team to explore and analyse ideas together. There is a lot of beauty in having people with different experiences, educational background, subjects and perspectives to collectively engage in philosophical problems and work together on the exploration of ideas. I find it highly rewarding and motivating.”

For as long as she can remember, Milena has been fascinated by how people produce knowledge and what makes science and technology possible.

 Early on, Milena wanted to understand how science and philosophy became possible, which drove her to want to move to Greece to study history of science there. Then she realised that her interests were more philosophical and focused on philosophy of science. On the side, Milena was also always interested in art, its history and particularly in architecture and design.

She said: “Eventually I realised those two passions of mine were intricately connected and I started my project on the aesthetics of science where I tried to understand how aesthetic values shape scientific pursuits and practices.”

The course is suitable for candidates from any background and previous familiarity with philosophy is not required. In fact, individuals will be actively encouraged to bring their own backgrounds into the philosophical issues discussed.

Milena says: “Philosophy is for everyone, and the course is flexible in offering introduction to classic debates as well as contemporary topics which candidates are free to choose and spend more time on.”

Many of our graduates develop passion for the subject and continue the undergraduate diploma for the second year and advance to the next certificate in philosophy and the advanced diploma. Other return to their work with a changed outlook on what they are doing and find the critical skills they develop in the course to open new opportunities. 

The Institute looks forward to seeing Milena’s invaluable experience and expertise shine through, with her work on the Philosophy portfolio.

If you are interested in studying Philosophy at ICE, you can find out more here.