Alan graduated from Glasgow University in 1987 having studied Veterinary Medicine and an intercalated BSc in Physiology. He subsequently undertook a PhD in the Anatomy Department at Bristol University where he studied the mechanical basis of tendon injury. He went on to work as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate and then as a lecturer.

Alan moved to the Royal Veterinary College in 1996 where he now holds the post of Professor of Locomotor Biomechanics.

He is a Director of the Company of Biologists, a not-for-profit publishing organisation dedicated to supporting and inspiring the biological community.

He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 2020.