2021

undergraduate of the year awards

2021

Finalists & Winners

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The Future CFO of the Year

Alan Potts

Accounting & Finance

Manchester Metropolitan University

After leaving college, Alan gained experience in a few different jobs while also studying with the Association of Accounting Technicians in his own time. Upon completing his AAT qualification, he enrolled on an accounting and finance degree at Manchester Metropolitan University to continue towards his ambition of becoming a chartered accountant. In his spare time, Alan enjoys playing football, lifting weights and training in Muay Thai.

finalists

Alistair Tait | University of Edinburgh | Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science

‍Charlotte Johns | University of Bath | Mathematics

‍Christopher Dy | University of East Anglia | Economics with a Year Abroad

‍Emilia Dobrzanska | Royal Holloway, University of London | Financial and Business Economics

‍Freddie Barnes | University of Bath | Business Administration

‍Jamie Kopelowitz | Durham University | Economics

‍Oliver Bailey | University of Bath | Management

‍Parnita Agarwal | University of Manchester | Management

The Young Activist of the Year Award

Curtis Parfitt-Ford

Computer Science

University of Southampton

Curtis is a software developer and activist and is currently studying computer science at the University of Southampton. Last year, he launched a legal challenge against the government’s A level grading algorithm, which based individuals’ grades on their school’s history rather than their own achievements. Seeing that the system would be greatly unfair, he teamed up with Foxglove, a non-profit specialising in algorithmic justice, to make things right. Curtis’ legal challenge led to the government’s U-turn, granting students’ individual centre-assessed grades. Curtis also runs a company called Loudspeek, which enables progressive political campaigns to put supporters in touch with their representatives.

finalists

Alvaro Perez | University of Glasgow | Biomedical Engineering

‍Ayush Sanghavi | University of Cambridge | Law

‍Ellen J McCarthy | Durham University | History

‍Esther Oloyede | University of Cambridge | Human, Social and Political Sciences

‍Imogen Duke | University of Oxford | History

‍Jacob Kelly | University of Oxford | Philosophy, Politics and Economics

‍Karim Ali | King's College London | Pharmacology

‍Mia Seljubac | University of Law | Law

‍Rebecca Moore | University College London | History

‍Sanah Kashyap | University of Cambridge | History

‍Tessy Idemudia | Gosforth Academy

‍Yasmin Patel | University of Cambridge | History

‍Yi Kang Choo | Queen's University Belfast | Law

The Undergraduate of the Year Award Celebrating Resilience

Ellie Lilliott

Mechanical Engineering

De Montfort University

Ellie is in her first year of a mechanical engineering degree at De Montfort University. As an air cadet she graduated from the Qualified Aerospace Instructors’ Course and used this to teach younger cadets. She also volunteers with her local Scout troop and has represented the UK at the World Scout Jamboree in Japan. Sport is a huge passion for Ellie and she is involved in rowing, rugby and boxing. In her spare time, she enjoys travelling and spending time in nature. Looking to the future, Ellie hopes to improve inclusivity of autistic individuals and young people who struggle with their mental health.

finalists

Alex Line | Cardiff University | Chemistry

‍Bartol Sikora | University of Oxford | Engineering Science

‍Cyrus Goodger | University of Dundee | Biomedical Engineering

‍Fabiha Chowdhury | University of Leeds | Physics with Astrophysics

‍Israel Mason-Williams | Queen Mary, University of London | Computer Science

‍Jack Wright | Leeds Beckett University | Computer Science

‍Josiah Edebiri | University of Manchester | Electrical and Electronic Engineering

‍Machi Onuorah | University College London | Chemistry

‍William Draper-Barr | Imperial College London | Mechanical Engineering

The LGBTQ+ Undergraduate of the Year

George Barker

Medicine

University College London

After moving to London from Merseyside, George studied medicine at University College London. Between ward rounds, clinics and volunteering in intensive care during the Covid-19 pandemic, George volunteered for Sexpression:UK, a charity delivering comprehensive and LGBT+ inclusive relationships and sex education in secondary schools. He served as national director, with highlights including BBC interviews, speaking at the House of Lords and lobbying the Department for Education to improve the curriculum. George’s clinical interests are pre-hospital emergency medicine, sexual health and space medicine, having attended courses at the European Space Agency. When not working, he performs in a medical sketch group: The MDs Comedy Revue.

finalists

Daniel Kirkbride | Newcastle University | Psychology

‍Erica Chan | Durham University | Social Sciences

‍Francesca Warren | University of York | Law

‍Joshua Bastow | University of Kent | Applied Bioscience

‍Kai Heale | Durham University | Computer Science

‍Mitchell Burns-Jackson | University of Liverpool | International Politics and Policy

‍Phillip Rucci | University of Southampton | Computer Science

The First Generation Undergraduate of the Year Award

Kathryn Moore

Russian and History

University of Nottingham

Kathryn is a first-generation student at the University of Nottingham. She studies Russian and history and is currently on her year abroad. Kathryn is involved in a range of societies, such as the East Midlands Universities Air Squadron, and she is working at a local GP practice and mass vaccination site to aid with the COVID-19 vaccination programme.

finalists

Abdullah Sheikh | Queen Mary University of London | Economics, Statistics and Mathematics

‍Bingming Li | University of Cambridge | Mathematics

‍Daniel Hempstead | University of East Anglia | Economics

‍Evelyn Chen | University of Southampton | Economics

‍Jenny Guo | University of Warwick | Economics

‍Jude D'Alesio | University of Bristol | Law

‍Liam Paul McCue | University of York | Economics

‍Mateo Bartra | University of Leeds | Economics

‍Megan Jenkins | University of Bristol | Geographical Sciences

‍Zachary Levenson | University of Bristol | Aerospace Engineering

The Black Heritage Undergraduate of the Year Award

Lara Vincent-Young

Business and Management

University of Exeter

Lara is a final-year business and management student at the University of Exeter. Throughout her undergraduate career, she has immersed herself in university life by taking on roles of responsibility, including academic representative and student ambassador, in which she has been able to provide representation for the BAME community. In her third year, Lara completed a 14-month marketing placement at Johnson and Johnson. This year, Lara has enjoyed working in the business school’s careers team as an employability ambassador and she is an active member of the cheerleading and gymnastics club, for which she has served as the uniform and branding officer.

finalists

Anita Adebola | Aston University | International Relations and Social Policy

‍Ashae Mederick | University of Birmingham | Philosophy

‍Christopher Willis | University of Oxford | Economics and Management

‍Debra Aziba | Aston University| International Business and Management

‍Melody Stephen | University of Manchester | Law with International Study

‍Priscilla Appiah | Cardiff University | Law

‍Tenishia Prah | Aston University | Law

‍Thora Paul | Lancaster University | Biomedical Science

‍Zandile Khanye | Teesside University | Early Childhood Studies

The Management Undergraduate of the Year Award

Theodor Sergiou,

Philosophy, Politics and Economics

University of Oxford

Theodor is studying philosophy, politics and economics at the University of Oxford. Speaking out and getting his voice heard has always been a necessity for him and he uses these skills to represent people whose voices are seldom heard on a national scale. He is the youngest person in British history to contribute to a cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street. Theodor has travelled across the world, undeterred by his visual impairment, to build a school in Ecuador and teach English in India – and he has successfully started youth forums in between hospital admissions.

finalists

Catherine Davies | University of Bristol | Management

‍Flynn Duggan | Loughborough University | Marketing and Management

‍Jessica Norton | University of Birmingham | Political science

‍Kerrith Parkes | University of Leeds | Business Management and the Human Resource

‍Laura Griffin | University of York | Business and Management

‍Louis Jones | Cardiff University | Sport Management

‍Militsa Mihaleva | University of Bath | Management

‍Rianna George | University of Glasgow | Accountancy

‍Simran Bassi | University of Bristol | International Business Management and German

The Undergraduate of the Year Award for Sustainable Thinking

Vanessa Lee

Law

University of Edinburgh

Vanessa is a penultimate-year law student at the University of Edinburgh, where she is currently president of the consulting club and Lawyers Without Borders society. She is also the co-chairperson of the Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show. After volunteering in Western China and Kenya, she founded Prospects Foundation, where she aims to advocate for access to education for underprivileged Kenyan students. So far, the organisation has helped over 200 students. Vanessa has also completed internships within the legal, consultancy and investment banking sectors. Outside of her studies, she is passionate about entrepreneurship and has been accepted onto various accelerators to develop her business.

finalists

Amy Farrer | Lancaster University | Advertising and Marketing Management

‍David Winters | University of Nottingham | Product Design and Manufacture

‍Euan Pringle | University of Bath | International Development with Economics

‍Evelyn Morgan | Heriot-Watt University | Chemical Engineering

‍Jessica Slater | University of Bristol | Geography

‍Louie Roberts | University of Cambridge | Geography

‍Louise Parkinson | University of Birmingham | Geology and Physical Geography

‍Valerie Sophia Doeringer | Lancaster University | Marketing Management

‍Vicky Regan | University of Bath | Chemical Engineering

About the event

Now in its 12th year, the TARGETjobs Undergraduate of the Year Awards brought together prominent employers and talented undergraduates for a prestigious awards ceremony, presented virtually by Rachel Riley on Friday 30 April 2021.

The nine awards were partnered by leading organisations: CIMA, Clifford Chance, National Student Pride, Attitude, myGwork, One Young World, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, HSBC, L’Oréal, Police Now and Rolls-Royce. There were fantastic prizes up for grabs for the students involved, including paid internships, meetings with senior executives and a graduate job!

Reaching the final is a huge achievement for the 90 or so student finalists, with over 5,000 entries from 140 different universities across the UK. The awards are an excellent opportunity for universities to showcase the calibre of undergraduates at their institution, while giving their students the chance to practise the graduate recruitment process and secure positions with internationally recognised organisations.

With all entrants completing an application, an online assessment with situational, numerical and inductive reasoning tests devised by SHL and an assessment day, the employers also have a pipeline of excellent potential candidates for future placements and graduate vacancies.

Both the finalists and the winners showcased an impressive range of skills, experiences and achievements, but what makes an Undergraduate of the Year? While some have studied, worked and volunteered all over the world, others have set up their own organisations or become ambassadors for important causes. A sample of the incredible attributes of the winners include: an air cadet, a STEM ambassador, a Muay Thai enthusiast, a volunteer in a local GP practice, the founder of a charity advocating for access to education, a member of a medical sketch group and the youngest person in British history to contribute to a cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street.

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