Profile

Candidate CV questions (extra)

• Education:

  Primary School: Victoria Road Primary School, Northwich, Cheshire.

  High School: Rudheath Senior Academy,2007-2012.
  Or Rudheath High School as it was called when I attended.  We used to have dark green jumpers matched with yellow sports kits rather than the smart black blazers that they have now!

  College: Sir John Deane’s College, Northwich, Cheshire.

• Qualifications:

  High school: Rudheath Senior Academy

  I have 11 GCSE’s in total; here are some of my favourites:

  • Art & Design, A*. This helps me be creative when making posters or videos to tell people about my work.
  • Mathematics, A.  Your teacher is right, maths is everywhere! I use things that I learnt in GCSE maths every day, even after 10 years!
  • English Language, A. Every time I do an experiment, I have to write about it to tell other scientists what happened.  English language class taught me to write well so that the other scientists can understand me.
  • Chemistry, biology and physics, BBB.  Science classes taught me all about plants, the human body, gravity and of course, chemicals!
  • Religious education, B. This is a very important class as when you grow up, you will meet lots of different people from other cultures, and it is good to know a bit about them.

  When I did my GCSEs over 10 years ago, the grades were letters and not numbers. An A grade is equivalent to a 7 or 8.

  TOP TIP:  Even if you don’t know what job you want to do when you’re older, a good set of GCSEs mean you can choose whatever you want later on!

  A-Levels: Sir John Deane’s College

  I chose four A-levels; chemistry, biology, English language and mathematics.  College is different to high school because you can choose your own topics, so you won’t have to do the lessons you don’t like anymore!!

  My top tip is to make sure you choose topics that you enjoy as you are more likely to do well if you really like the class. Look out for work experience and volunteering roles too!

  University: Manchester Metropolitan University
  (Graduated 2019 with a first-class, MChem Chemistry masters degree)

  When I got my final results in college, they were not high enough to get into the university course that I chose. At first, I was sad that I had to choose somewhere different, but now I am so happy that I did!  The different style of teaching allowed me to thrive and achieve the top grade for university qualifications.

  Remember, even if you do not get your first choice, your second choice may turn out to be twice as good!

  During my degree, I completed several extra projects and funded summer internships. People who hired me were more interested that I was passionate and excited about chemistry and had done extra things outside of school and college rather than my grades at college.

  Read on to hear about my university qualifications:

  I chose a foundation year course in chemistry that helped me relearn the things that I found tricky at college.  These are a great option if your grades were lower than expected, or if you want to do a course that doesn’t match your college subjects.

  After this, I chose a four-year chemistry degree.  This means that I now have a masters degree in chemistry.  (A 4-year MChem integrated masters in chemistry is one step higher than the BSc that you get from a 3-year degree).

  If you’d like more details about what my modules and practical classes were like, please ask me a question.

  As a university student, you will have to be more independent than you were at college.  So set your alarm clocks to get to your lectures on time because they’ll be no one to babysit you!  That being said, as universities are much larger than many colleges, there are extra staff and resources to help you to succeed with your studies.

  They’ll always be someone on hand to help, whether this is with your classes, your mental health, financial support or if you just need a chat.  It’s up to you to engage and take advantage of these resources though.

  University is not as scary as it seems!  If you managed the jump from high school to college, this jump will be easy in comparison.

  I worked very hard at university and achieved the top grades because I really enjoyed working in chemistry.  I was offered the chance to carry on with my research, and I am now halfway through a more advanced degree, called a PhD.

  Manchester Metropolitan University
  I am currently in my 2nd year of a 3-year doctoral degree in chemistry

  During my degree, I really enjoyed doing my own experiments and decided that I wanted to continue this.  I was offered a scholarship to continue my research, which was funded by an external company.  You can read more about what I get up to each day on the ‘My typical day’ section.

• Work History:

  Whilst I was studying, I got a job working part-time at Tesco on the tills.  This is not linked to chemistry, but it shows employers that I can talk to people and complete set tasks.  It also shows employers that I can be trusted to turn up on time, handle money and be polite to customers.

  If you decide to go to university, the campus will usually offer a range of student-friendly jobs around campus.  For example, I do 3-hours of teaching per week for some extra money and experience.