Dr Bester studied for his BSc (Honours) in neuroscience and received his PhD from the Auditory Lab at the University of Western Australia (2008–2016). Since completion, he has worked as a clinical research fellow under Prof Stephen O’Leary at the Department of Otolaryngology, The University of Melbourne.
Dr Bester works primarily in cochlear electrophysiology, cochlear mechanics, and the clinical translation of research. Dr Bester’s experience in designing and conducting clinical and cohort trials is crucial for pioneering the development and deployment of these tools with an industrial partner, Cochlear Ltd, who are conducting their largest scale clinical investigation to date with this technology (CLT 5667). He has worked on translating research to improved clinical methods in the clinical monitoring of electrocochleography with feedback to surgeons, resulting in direct changes to implantation at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital.