2023 prize winners
The Advantage Award recognises your efforts in developing and reflecting upon your employability skills, helping to prepare you for your future career.
We also award a series of prizes, sponsored by employers, to students who have gone above and beyond during their Award modules.
2023 Advantage Award prize winners
Outstanding Contribution to the Community Prize
This prize recognises an individual student's passion for their contribution to the local community.
Supported by Save the Children
The Advantage Award offered a unique opportunity to gain new perspectives and practical experience. This would enhance my professional growth and enable me to stand out from other students within Psychology. I was particularly interested in providing support to local businesses and supporting children with their future aspirations. Therefore, I selected modules in those areas.
In the Engaging the Public with Psychology module, working in a school has allowed me to demonstrate my commitment to helping young people succeed.
Through the Nottingham Consultancy Challenge, I provided a local Breast Cancer prevention business with a detailed plan of how to launch their service and reach a target audience.
By participating in the Advantage Award, I have been able to gain a new level of expertise and confidence in my abilities. The program has provided me with a wealth of knowledge and practical experience that has been instrumental in my professional growth and success.
Winner:
Sophie Cundy, second year BSc Psychology
Learning about the Advantage Award on my open day acted as an incentive for me to choose Nottingham. The chance to be supported in undertaking extra-curricular modules seemed like such a great opportunity.
I picked my first module, Skills for Employability, because I was uncertain on what I wanted to do as a career. I went to Psychology-based career events and realised that this sector is where my skillset lies.
I have contributed to communities on local, national, and international levels. Through my Peer Mentoring module, I encouraged first year students to meet their aspirations. During my volunteering in Fiji with Think Pacific, I promoted positive mental-health strategies through educational team workshops and one-on-ones.
Highly commended:
Lauren Sampson, third year BA Liberal Arts
I saw the Advantage Award as a way to develop skills that were not taught on my course. This would allow me to make a positive contribution to the environment in which I live. The Award was about shaping myself as an individual to build a character that I felt proud to be.
Teamwork, leadership, and communication were three skills I wished to focus on when choosing my modules. I chose objectives that would not just help me in my future role as a doctor but also explore activities outside of medicine that could have an equal impact on people’s lives.
I have been mentoring first year medical students whilst also being a student ambassador. Performing these roles, I have come to understand many things including hard work, respect, and empathy. Inspired by the skills I gained from both of these roles, I created a neighbourhood book group for local youngsters. This group has become a safe space for young people to express themselves for who they truly are.
Winner:
Georgina Shajan, second year BMBS Medicine
Leadership Prize
This prize recognises an individual student who has demonstrated leadership skills.
Supported by Mars
Career development has been a key focus whilst I have been at university. Taking relevant and skill enhancing opportunities has been my primary motivation. The Advantage Award allowed me to maximise these opportunities and reflect on my performance.
I have completed three Award modules - Career mentoring, Part time work and Covid-19 Volunteers.
Developing my reflective practices has been invaluable to me in applications and in group or individual academic work.
I have successfully led teams in charity, academic and operational sectors, working with integrity and passion.
During the pandemic, I supervised a team of Covid sample collectors which required critical decision making and effective communication. I have been able to apply this experience to my degree through participating in career mentoring with an alumnus, utilising my skills with an industry focus.
Winner:
Charlotte Parker, third year BSc Animal Science
Motivated by my desire to enhance my knowledge and skillset, I decided to participate in the Advantage Award.
My Representation in the Students' Union module afforded me the chance to sharpen my leadership abilities and foster an inclusive environment in any setting. I was serving as a distance learning course representative and Co-Chair of the Learning Community Forum.
Furthermore, the Skills for Employability Module identified areas for improvement and personal growth. This enhanced my ability to lead, mentor, and inspire others.
Through these modules I gained invaluable leadership skills such as effective communication, problem-solving, and decision-making. I have since applied these in various professional and personal contexts.
Highly commended:
Nicodemus Amboko, MA Education
Personal Development Prize
This prize recognises an individual student for their commitment to personal development.
Supported by Capital One
I have long been a person with many interests and an intense drive to learn more. The Advantage Award provided me with a way to both enrich activities I was already undertaking, as well as try brand new ones.
However, the main reason I started the Award was that I believe that having the ability to step outside of my comfort zone will hold me in good stead throughout all aspects of life.
Being a peer mentor developed my skills of communication and empathy in tackling students’ concerns. It built me into a stronger leader with confidence, creativity and problem-solving skills.
Studying abroad in Canada accelerated my personal development hugely in terms of independence and learning what I want for myself professionally and in life.
Thanks to this Award module, I am not the same person I was when I left the UK. I have an even greater drive to try new things and I now believe in myself.
The Advantage Award was the perfect steppingstone between the safety of academic life, and the unpredictability of the wider world.
Winner:
Hannah Woods, third year BSc Psychology
I considered the Advantage Award as a precious opportunity for me to gain knowledge and skills for my personal and career development.
Personal development relates to wide range of areas, from professional knowledge to personal competencies. The modules I took vary from theoretical knowledge to mentorship and team projects.
Whilst mentoring, I organised activities for a team of first-year students and collected their feedback after each session. I gained various skills such as communication, leadership, problem-solving and organisation.
In the Open-source Assistive Devices - OPAD - module, I worked on the technical parts of the project aiming at developing an app for the Queen’s Medical Centre, which developed my teamwork, collaboration skills and professional skills.
In the future, I will keep contributing to my personal growth and taking on new challenges outside of my comfort zone.
Highly commended:
Kaiyi Chen, second year BSc Computer Science with Artificial Intelligence
I participated in the Advantage Award as I wanted to continue my personal development and I had heard it was an excellent scheme for boosting career-related skills.
The Introduction to Coding module supported my interest in technology. As a Biochemistry student, I had not coded during my degree and found it particularly interesting to see similarities between genetic code and coding from a programming perspective.
The Career Wellbeing module highlighted the importance of wellbeing in personal development.
I chose Excel in Science as the focus on careers in science was incredibly insightful and resonated with me as Biochemistry student.
It allowed me to take up responsibilities and additional opportunities such as completing a research internship.
Highly commended:
Jennifer Rai, third year MSci Biochemistry
Inclusion Prize
This prize recognises the outstanding achievement of a student who has supported inclusion in their activities undertaken throughout the Award.
Supported by Enterprise Rent-A-Car
I viewed the Advantage Award as the perfect complement to my course. It enabled me to engage with other students via group projects and apply my skills to address real world business challenges.
The Capital One Product Challenge developed my leadership skills managing complex processes, maximising team effectiveness and ensuring inclusion. I believe leadership and inclusion go hand in hand as good leaders coordinate the strengths of each individual.
This skill was developed during my Enterprise Rent-A-Car Business Challenge module where our group successfully handled the pressure of improvising answers to challenging questions about our pitch, adapting and adjusting decisions accordingly.
Winner:
Emily Astley, second year BSc Management
The Advantage Award is a great opportunity to learn new skills and gain valuable work experience, which could help me decide on a future career path.
I chose to undertake a placement with Nottingham Citizens who aim to improve working conditions and address mental health concerns. Through interactions with MPs, charities and care workers, I have displayed inclusivity in my communication skills. The conversations surrounding care worker wages showed the variety in opinions and experiences of care workers themselves. Teamwork was hugely important for this project. We all worked well together, despite having different backgrounds, ethnicities and political beliefs, which demonstrates support for inclusion.
My culture module had a big emphasis on inclusivity and further developed my cultural awareness.
Highly commended:
Alisha D’Souza, second year BA Geography
Professional Development Prize
This prize recognises students' passion, innovation and dedication to their professional development.
Supported by Boots
I was eager to grow more as a professional and develop the skills needed for success in the working environment. The Advantage Award has allowed me to explore interests not covered within my degree, while developing key skills.
The Inspiring Young People module assessment required me to create and deliver a five-minute presentation to an audience. This allowed me to demonstrate my public speaking and communication skills which I have developed as an ambassador.
The UoN Student Leader’s module required me to research and evidence my commercial awareness. Knowledge in this area is important for a business to grow as it enables them to be better prepared for future challenges and predict trends.
Winner:
Ellie Thackeray, second year LLB Law
The Advantage Award provides a platform for professional development and to experience theory in practice outside of your degree. When presented with the opportunity to pick Advantage Award modules, I was motivated to pick skills to ensure I am ready for the professional world once I graduate.
Through my participation in the Advantage Award, I have shown consistent development of my professional skills by undertaking one module each year.
The Public Speaking module improved my communication skills and confidence, Representation in the Students’ Union helped me understand how to be an effective leader and the Part-Time jobs module supported me in gaining a more hands-on experience in different work environments.
Highly commended:
Malika Sindhi, third year BSc Management