Rate My Professor Roslyn Kemp

Professor Roslyn Kemp is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, at the University of Otago. She holds a BSc (Hons I) in Microbiology from the University of Otago in 1998 and a PhD in Immunology from the University of Otago and the Malaghan Institute in 2002. Her career includes postdoctoral fellowships at the Trudeau Institute in the USA from 2002 to 2004, the University of Oxford in the UK from 2004 to 2005, and an MRC Career Development Fellowship at the National Institute for Medical Research in the UK from 2005 to 2008. She joined the University of Otago in 2009 as a lecturer in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, advancing to senior lecturer, associate professor in 2017, and full professor.

Professor Kemp's research specializes in immunology, focusing on T cells as mediators of anti-tumour immunity and inflammation, particularly the roles of T cell and myeloid cell subsets in colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, and mucosal immune responses. Her projects explore patient outcomes, gut-specific immunity using organoids, vaccination for T cell memory, and high-dimensional immune analysis. Key publications include "High dimensional mass cytometric analysis reveals an increase in effector regulatory T cells as a distinguishing feature of colorectal tumors" (Journal of Immunology, 2019), "The immune checkpoint CD96 defines a distinct lymphocyte phenotype & is highly expressed on tumor-infiltrating T cells" (Immunology & Cell Biology, 2018), and "Regulatory T cell heterogeneity and the cancer immune response" (Clinical & Translational Immunology, 2017). She has received the Derrick Rowley Medal for Service to the Australasian Society of Immunology (2025), Roche Translational Cancer Research Fellowship (2016), Miriam Dell Award (2015), National Tertiary Teaching Excellence Award (2015), and University of Otago Supervisor of the Year (2013 and 2020). Kemp has held positions as Secretary-General of the International Union of Immunological Societies (2016-2019), President of the New Zealand Society for Oncology (2017-2019), and co-chair of IUIS committees on publications, education, and gender equity. She is a member of the Ako Aotearoa Academy of Tertiary Teaching Excellence.