Philip Cotton

Philip Cotton is a British physician and university administrator who has served as the Vice-Chancellor of University of Global Health Equity since April 2023. He was previously the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Rwanda between 2015 and 2020. He is also a methodist preacher.

Early life and education Cotton was born in Birmingham, England and was educated at Riddlesdown High School in Croydon, South London. After a period of teaching English in Nepal, in 1981 he began his studies in anatomy at the University of St Andrews where he was President of the Student Voluntary Service. He completed his medical education at the University of Glasgow which involved electives abroad in India and Tanzania.

Career After working as a general practitioner for NHS Scotland and rising to the position of Professor at the University of Glasgow Medical School, Cotton took secondment to set-up and become Principal of Rwanda's first medical school, the College of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Rwanda.

Cotton is also a volunteer doctor for Freedom from Torture and a director of St Andrew's Clinics for Children, a Scottish-based charity aimed at supporting clinics in Africa.

Honours Cotton was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2017 Birthday Honours for services to education in Rwanda. He holds honorary professorships at the Universities of St Andrews and Glasgow and was elected as an International Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2021.