Graduated: 2014
Kike entered the University of Nottingham as a Great Britain junior athlete in the javelin and was a three time medalist at the British University Championships. After graduation, she completed an internship at Citi investment bank before gaining a track and field scholarship to the University of Florida. Kike finished top 20 in the USA Collegiate javelin rankings and graduated with the Southeastern Conference Academic Honour award for her MSc Management degree and athletics.
Upon returning to the UK, Kike worked for a financial technology start-up firm. With a passion for diversity, she launched the BYP Network App to connect black young professionals with each other and corporations. After gaining thousands of downloads, she was named as one of three Sky Women in Technology Scholars and given their full support, along with a grant, to be a future leader in the tech industry. Kike is part of the New Entrepreneurs Foundation, the Founders of the Future and the World Economic Forum: Global Shapers.
I was always good at maths when I was growing up, and I enjoyed studying business in secondary school. I saw economics as a combination of the two, so I took an AS/A-level along with double maths. It also helped that I was very interested in current affairs, especially the global financial crisis.
The summer before starting my second sixth-form year I attended a one-week summer school at The University of Nottingham. It was organised by the Sutton Trust, and I was very surprised to have earned a place.
It was my first visit to Nottingham, and I absolutely loved it. Living on a beautiful campus was so different to living in London. I took part in some interactive lectures and met some of the academics, who were very passionate about their work and research. The whole experience made me choose the School of Economics.
The staff are at the heart of most of my best memories. They were always extremely helpful and pleasant. They were easy to talk to and made lectures interesting.
I also enjoyed meeting new people on my course and getting involved in group work for some of my modules. And just the memory of walking in and out of the Sir Clive Granger building is special as well.
Pay a visit first. Go to an open day and see if you like the campus and what's on offer. It's also worth talking to alumni about certain modules and how the grading system works.
They prepared me for the difficulties of studying and training. I had to balance my school work with athletics training throughout my three years at Nottingham.
Also, my degree in economics has been a great base for my MSc, as I've acquired transferable skills.
Yes, we keep in touch over Facebook and occasionally meet up during the summer.
It's nice to see how everyone has progressed in life since leaving the NSE. Whether it's an amazing career or pursuing further studies abroad, it's good to see your classmates doing well.
Sir Clive Granger BuildingUniversity of NottinghamUniversity Park Nottingham, NG7 2RD
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