Dr Roberts joined the University of Bath as a Lecturer (T) in Sport in January 2020. Since then, he has convened and taught on a range of undergraduate and postgraduate units, which covered a variety of topics including (but not limited to), applied sport psychology, talent identification and development, research design and statistics, contemporary issues in sport, interdisciplinary studies, and sport psychology theories. Dr Roberts has also supervised undergraduate and postgraduate student dissertation projects, as well as acted as academic advisor (formerly personal tutor) to numerous undergraduate students who were at varying stages of their degrees.

Since joining the University, he has achieved Fellowship of the HEA status and has been nominated for SU teaching awards that have related to his role with peer mentoring.

Dr Roberts is the current Deputy Director of Studies for the FdSc/BSc Sports Performance courses (2022-present). Previously he has held the DDoS role for the BSc Sports Management and Coaching course (2021-22).

He is a part of both the INSPIRE and Pedagogical Research networks at the University and has developed collaborations with colleagues across Departments to generate pedagogical research opportunities. Currently a part of a TDF project which looks to demystify the language of assessment and to develop a flexible and inclusive faculty assessment criterion. Further to this, he has an interest in pedagogical research which will lead to a better understanding of the social networks that UG students develop during their time at university and how this may better inform teaching practice.

Dr Roberts’ research examines sport, physical activity and disability from a psychological perspective. As an early career teaching specialist, he has authored a handful of publications on topics including the role of sport competitions (i.e., the Invictus Games) in the recovery of wounded, injured and sick (WIS) military veterans, classification in the Paralympics, thriving in elite sport, and the impact of lifetime stress exposure. He has presented at several national and international conferences on his research, whilst also contributing to training events for sport (e.g., UK Athletics) and charity (e.g., Help for Heroes) organisations.

His research has focused on a couple of areas. Firstly, the use of sport and physical activity in the recovery of wounded, injured and sick military veterans. Initially, this research explored engagement with recovery programmes amongst a WIS military veteran population before proceeding to develop an intervention to enhance engagement and adherence (in collaboration with Help for Heroes Sports Recovery). The programme of research also explored stress associated with competing at an international competition (i.e., the Invictus Games) with findings leading to a change in policy around preparing and supporting the UK Invictus team at future iterations of the Games. This has led to international recognition in this area and working as an international collaborator on research projects conducted around further iterations of the Invictus Games. Secondly, the role of stress and its impact upon well-being within athletes with a disability. This research has developed understanding of the unique stressors encountered by athletes with a disability, particularly at the elite level.  Classification has become an area of interest with findings from the research supporting training events of UK-based classifiers in ensuring a fairer and better experience of the process (in collaboration with the British Paralympic Association and UK Athletics).

Dr Roberts is keen to develop each of these research areas further with particular interest in enhancing intersectionality (i.e., disability and gender) and ensuring that this research has impact (i.e., policy change or enhancing practice). He is also interested in ‘what next’ for WIS military veterans after an Invictus Games or during their recovery process, particularly around leadership roles or pathways given their unique experiences.