Our Lead Faculty:
Akin Aregbesola

From Industry Expertise to Academic Research Leadership

Akin Aregbesola brings over three decades of professional experience spanning cloud computing, telecommunications, enterprise systems, and digital infrastructure.
His work sits at the intersection of real-world engineering practice and academic inquiry—uniquely positioning him to guide professionals transitioning into doctoral research.
Rather than teaching theory in isolation, Akin specialises in translating industry experience into academically rigorous research, helping candidates map their expertise onto established scholarly frameworks and develop credible, high-impact PhD proposals.

Academic & Professional Background

• MBA – Birmingham City University, England
• PGD in Oil & Gas (IT Focus) – Robert Gordon University, Scotland
• PGD in Telecommunications – United States Telecom Training Institute, USA
• BSc in Electrical Engineering – University of Ado Ekiti, Nigeria
• Fellow, The Chartered Institute for IT (BCS), London

Professional Certifications

Akin holds a broad portfolio of globally recognised certifications across cloud, infrastructure, and security:

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer
• Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator
• Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)
• CompTIA A+
• CompTIA Security+
• Certified Linux System Administrator
• Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA)
• Certified Requirements Engineer
• Master of DevOps Engineering

Mentorship Philosophy

Akin’s approach goes beyond instruction.
He works closely with each candidate to:

• Translate professional experience into researchable problems
• Map practical knowledge to academic literature and frameworks
• Build structured, defensible research proposals
• Develop confidence in doctoral-level thinking and communication

His mentorship is hands-on, iterative, and deeply personalised—combining structured guidance with continuous feedback.
Candidates benefit not only from his technical expertise, but from his ability to bridge the gap between industry and academia.

From Cloud Engineering to PhD Preparation

Akin has mentored numerous professionals through:

• Cloud and infrastructure project development
• Portfolio building using real-world systems
• Practical, implementation-driven learning

His trainees consistently leave with:

• Demonstrable technical capability
• Strong project portfolios
• Readiness for real-world application

Within The Doctoral Forge, this experience is extended to support PhD-level research development and academic positioning.

Mission

To bridge the gap between industry expertise and academic research by helping experienced professionals transform their knowledge into rigorous, impactful doctoral work.
Through structured mentorship and strategic guidance, Akin supports candidates in becoming:

• Credible researchers
• Competitive PhD applicants
• Future contributors to academia and industry innovation

Positioning Statement

“I help experienced professionals translate decades of practice into academically rigorous PhD research—turning their experience into their strongest advantage.”