Left to Right: Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Neil Armstrong, Chancellor of the University of Exeter Floella Benjamin OBE DL, Kate Gaskell and Dr Sara Burton.

Floella rewards career driven Biosciences student

Kate Gaskell, a third year Biosciences student from the University’s Cornwall campus is celebrating a £1,000 payout to further her career.

She is one of five students to win one of this year’s Floella Benjamin career development awards.

Kate Gaskell, a third year Biosciences student from the University’s Cornwall campus is celebrating a £1,000 payout to further her career. She is one of five students to win one of this year’s Floella Benjamin career development awards.

Kate will be taking a Wildlife in the Media course at Cornwall College, and undertaking a placement with the Ecologist magazine. The annual awards, now in their third year, look to develop employability and give financial support for innovative career ideas. 

Dr Floella Benjamin, OBE DL Chancellor of the University of Exeter says: “These awards enable students to turn good ideas into a plan of action. When judging we are looking for students who are driven, focused and willing to go the extra mile to ensure career success. It is great that these awards are being used for such a variety of projects, to show that Exeter students are having an impact around the world.”

Competition was intense for the five £1,000 awards, with 70 applications received. All applicants had to write and submit a costed proposal explaining what it was they needed and how it would help their future employability. These proposals were judged by staff at the Careers and Employment Service and by Floella. The Floella Benjamin Career Development awards were devised by the University of Exeter’s Careers and Employment Service as part of a range of opportunities available to students to develop their personal skills and employability. See the Employability website for more information.

Date: 20 January 2009

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