A desk is visible in the foreground, and shelves with folders and office items are behind them. The UCL logo appears in the upper right corner.]

[Visual Description: The video shows a woman seated in an office setting, signing in British Sign Language. She wears a black short-sleeved top with her hair tied back

Amy Academic Spotlight Interview Video YouTube video by DCAL UCL

In our next Academic Spotlight Series video, Amy Hegedus, a CODA, reflects on her journey from studying Psychology at university, to completing a postgraduate qualification in mental health interventions in education, to her current role as a Research Assistant at DCAL.

youtu.be/f74FfkRoh54

Image on the right: A woman stands and signs in BSL. She wears glasses, a black top, and a name tag, with others seated around her and a blue painting in the background

Visual Description - Image on the left: A woman stands and signs in BSL. She wears glasses, a black top, and a name tag, with others seated around a table watching.

DCAL was invited by the Empowering Deaf Society to attend the parliamentary event “Deaf Voices: Breaking Barriers in Education” on Monday 16th March 2026. At the event, Elisabeth Taunton, a Research Assistant at DCAL, delivered a presentation outlining DCAL’s work and impact.

Discover UCL: exploring university life as a deaf or hard of hearing student As applications open for Discover UCL 2026, we’re looking back at the 2025 edition of this specialist summer school run in conjunction with the UCL Deafness Cognition and Language Research Centre (DCA...

If you are a Year 12 student who is deaf or hard of hearing, Discover UCL offers the opportunity to experience student life, meet new people, and explore your future. Applications are now open and will close on Tuesday 16 June 2026. Apply now!

www.ucl.ac.uk/widening-par...

Lived experiences of deaf parents: insights into pride, community, bilingualism, and barriers YouTube video by DCAL UCL

New lay summary!
Dr Patrick Rosenberg & Dr Victoria St. Clair share their study with Dr Evelyne Mercure on deaf parents’ lived experiences. The video highlights navigating resources, working with professionals, and accessing support during parenthood.
youtu.be/vTjk5ndmLi8

Are you deaf and interested in research or professional services? DCAL is offering paid one-week placements! Gain hands-on experience in a world-class centre. Application deadline: 29 May at 5pm. Find out more and apply: www.ucl.ac.uk/.../dcal-pai...

BSL teachers: reminder that our BSL Linguistics for Teachers CPD course is open for registration. 🗓 Deadline: 12 February 2026. Places are limited. Full details and booking info below 👇

DCAL highlights staff promotions, research funding and new PhD completions We’re resharing the congratulations section from DCAL’s 2025 end-of-year newsletter to give wider visibility to recent staff and student achievements.

We’re resharing staff and student achievements from our 2025 end-of-year newsletter, including promotions, research funding and PhD completions.
www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

Update on BSL GCSE and CPD Courses for Teachers An update on our plans for the BSL GCSE and the CPD courses being developed to support BSL teachers.

We’re launching a new CPD course: BSL Linguistics for Teachers. This update shares our plans for the BSL GCSE and the CPD courses being developed to support BSL teachers. Find out more and register: www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

DeafATW and RNID are collecting evidence on Access to Work – including budget cuts and renewal issues. If you’re deaf, deafblind or have hearing loss and have used or applied for AtW since Oct 2024, please take or share this survey:
connect.deafatw.com/ty/cl/eyJ2Ij...

Job Opportunity at University of Leeds: Research Assistant – Examining the multilingual experiences and repertoires of DHH children growing up in migrant contexts of Germany and the UK **The appointment is available on a fixed term basis for 36 months at 50% fte**The School of Education, University of Leeds, seeks to recruit a Research Assistant for a AHRC funded research project th...

🔍 Job opportunity: Research Assistant (50% FTE, 36 months) on an AHRC-funded project exploring multilingual experiences of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in the UK and Germany. Based at the University of Leeds.
jobs.leeds.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx...

BSL Cognitive Screening Test (BSL-CST) YouTube video by DCAL UCL

New lay summary release! Dr Joanna Atkinson shares the development of the first screening test for detecting cognitive impairment and dementia in deaf signers: the British Sign Language Cognitive Screening Test (BSL CST). youtu.be/pm_TbR77wAc

Our DCAL 2025 Christmas Newsletter is out now 🎄
Read the newsletter and watch the BSL videos here: mailer.ucl.ac.uk/7SWP-2ECWZ-3...
Thank you for your continued support. Wishing you a peaceful festive break and a positive New Year.

Congratulations to Brennan Terhune-Cotter on receiving a Newton International Fellowship from the Royal Society! He’ll be with us at DCAL until Nov 2027, working on neural mechanisms of reading in deaf adults: fingerspelling.
royalsociety.org/news/2025/11...

Deadline extended to Friday 5 December.
UCL DCAL is recruiting a PhD researcher on tactile BSL and DeafBlind communication. DeafBlind applicants especially encouraged.
Apply: www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

"And", "Or", and intonation in BSL YouTube video by DCAL UCL

New lay summary!
Dr Matt Brown shares key findings from his PhD on how BSL expresses “and”/“or” through signs, facial expressions, body movement and space and why this matters for linguistics, pragmatics, and deaf children’s language development.
🎥 youtu.be/6FbIw9aAslo

Some of our colleagues at DCAL attended the British Library’s Family Festival: Imaginary Worlds on Saturday 22nd November, where we hosted a DCAL stall. We had a fantastic time meeting everyone!

PhD opportunity at UCL on tactile BSL & DeafBlind communication.
3-year FT / 5-year PT, £27k stipend, start Feb 2026.
UK students only. Deadline: 1 Dec 2025.
More info + how to apply: www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

Last call for the Bencie Woll Prize – apply by 8 December. £500 award for early-career researchers with a BSL-focused publication from the last two years. Send your CV, 500-word summary and publication link to dcal@ucl.ac.uk. Deaf researchers encouraged to apply: www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

There’s still time to apply for the Deaf in AI & Technology workshop. The deadline’s this Sunday, 23 November. Re-sharing in case you haven’t seen it yet.

Interview with Vernon: DCAL Internship Experience YouTube video by DCAL UCL

Meet Vernon, a final-year university student in Biomedical Sciences, who shares his internship experience at DCAL. His week at DCAL gave him insight into research, brain imaging, and better clarity about his future career - youtu.be/ylHW99wRuT8

Academic Spotlight Series | Kearsy’s Journey: From Studying ASL Linguistics to Director at DCAL YouTube video by DCAL UCL

In our next #AcademicSpotlightSeries, Prof. Kearsy Cormier shares her journey from studying ASL linguistics in Texas to leading DCAL. Her 20+ years at UCL exploring BSL structure, use & brain processing have shaped sign linguistics. Watch her story: youtu.be/7Pkq-qUpkUc?...

We’re joining the British Library’s Family Festival: Imaginary Worlds on Sat 22 Nov (12–4pm). Visit DCAL’s Fingerspelling Space Race to race friends and test your BSL skills.
More info: events.bl.uk/events/famil...

Deaf in AI and Technology Workshop Join the Deaf in AI & Technology workshop on 9 Dec 2025 in London. Explore how deaf professionals are shaping the future of tech, AI and sign language.

Deaf in AI & Technology workshop – 9 Dec 2025, London. Find details and apply at www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

PhD Opportunity at UCL – Tactile Sign Language & DeafBlind Communication Join a pioneering ERC-funded project at UCL’s DCAL, Europe’s leading centre for Deafness, Cognition & Language research.

PhD Opportunity at UCL – Tactile Sign Language & DeafBlind Communication. Funded PhD at DCAL exploring tactile BSL and DeafBlind interaction. UK only. Deadline 1 Dec 2025.

www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

Job Advert: Research Assistant – Tactile Language Project Are you passionate about language, communication, and inclusion? Do you want to help shape the future of British Sign Language (BSL) for the deafblind community?

Join UCL’s DCAL as a Research Assistant on the Tactile Language Project – exploring protactile and tactile forms of BSL with deafblind people across the UK. Full-time, 18 months. Apply by 17 Nov 2025

👉 www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-scienc...

New paper with Evelyne Mercure: hearing children of deaf mothers learn sign and speech – showing bimodal bilingualism as enriching and adaptive.
🔗 cambridge.org/core/journals/bilingualism-language-and-cognition/article/BB899E0B4FCB32AE0DEF5D160F2EA4AA