Riaz Akhtar graduated from UMIST in 2003 with a First Class M.Eng. (Hons) degree in biomedical materials science with industrial experience. In 2007, he completed a Ph.D. degree at The University of Manchester on the micromechanical behavior of bone. Following this, he undertook a postdoctoral position investigating the micromechanical properties of soft tissue. In July 2008, Riaz was awarded a British Heart Foundation Advanced Training fellowship investigating vascular stiffening and diabetes. He joined the University of Liverpool in October 2011 as a lecturer in Bio-medical Engineering.