Student
success

Showcasing our students and graduates

We are extremely proud of our students, graduates and their achievements. From award wins to research publications, they have shown true commitment and have enjoyed many successes.

College of Arts, Humanities and Education

• Amy Vallance (Fine Art) was awarded funding from Derby City Council’s Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) Vibrancy Fund to undertake an art project to increase the vibrancy of Derby. Amy used the funding to install a canopy of colourful ribbons on Iron Gate in the city centre. The installation, which was featured on the BBC News website, came shortly after winning a Student Residency at Banks Mill Studios.
• In August, four Derby students won the Banks Mill Studios’ Student Residency Award. Mthabisi Mlauzi (Film and Television), Zoe Taylore (Illustration), Dawn Wesselby (Arts) and Andrew Martyn Sugars (Arts) were announced as winners of the residency. They will be provided with access to a rent-free shared studio space for a year, where they will be able to develop their creative practice and explore self-employment, as well as accessing the specialist support services Banks Mill offers. 
• Marina Mendes was awarded the winning collection from the University of Derby and Hertfordshire University Joint Catwalk Show at Graduate Fashion Week 2022. Lydia Stricker also received the highly commended award. Marina was named one of the new innovative designers to watch in the Guardian’s review of Graduate Fashion week. 
• Postgraduate student Nathan Addai (Visual Communication) created Mental Roots, a multi-faceted media project focusing on black men’s mental health, which was featured on BBC Four in December. Nathan went on to be named Emerging Digital/Creative Star (under 25) in the Mainframe Awards in April for his Mental Roots Podcast.
• Marina Mendes (Fashion Design) was awarded Runner Up in the Knitwear Category at the Fashanne Fashion Awards. The event was set up by BBC East Midlands news reporter Anne Davies in 2017 to help East Midlands Fashion students gain exposure for their talents.
• A group of Football Journalism students got to watch the Lionesses make history as they were given the opportunity to report on the 2022 UEFA European Women's Football Championship. Throughout the Championship, the students attended matches and media days, interviewed players and wrote features for the likes of the Guardian, the FA, Reach PLC, the Athletic and Manchester City. Five of the students were able to report on the final from Wembley Stadium and bring the once in a lifetime experience to a close. 
• Izzy Pover (Interior Design) reached the final stages of the Cumulus Green 2022 competition. Izzy reached the jury review stage of the competition with her regenerative bar design project ‘Gin House’. 

College of Business, Law and Social Sciences

• Natalia Jarczynska (Business Management) won Enactus Team Member of the Year in the Enactus UK National Expo Awards 2022 in London. Natalia took on the role of Head of HR for the Enactus Derby Society and was critical in building the new team, using her resolve and management skills to overcome many challenges. Natalia later took the lead on promotional and pitching aspects of the project, becoming a figurehead for the team. Her commitment to Enactus led her to be selected for the award from over 3,500 students.
• Constable Chloe Player (Criminology) completed a seven-week training programme to become a Special Constable for Derbyshire Constabulary. During the programme, Chloe supported many victims through extremely difficult circumstances. This work was recognised with the prestigious High Sheriff of Derbyshire’s Award for Outstanding Contribution to Law and Justice in Derbyshire.
• Christian Bailey (Criminology) secured a place on the Unlocked Graduates Scheme. The scheme is an award-winning leadership development programme that recruits outstanding graduates and trains them to become prison officers.
• Harvinder Singh Saluja (Tourism Management), head of Enactus Derby, has been invited to join Generation Next as a board champion member. Generation Next is a part of East Midlands Chamber and won the UK Chamber of the Year Award 2022.

College of Health, Psychology and Social Care

• Nat Banyard (Biomedical Health) secured a prestigious placement year with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as an Associate Clinical Data Manager. During her placement she supported two clinical trials, represented GSK in their STEM outreach drive, supported the development of other placement students and worked with the company’s Women’s Leadership Initiative Committee. 
• Bea Fallowes (Sport Therapy and Rehabilitation) was part of a select group of students who supported the medical provision for British Cycling. The students ran weekly sports therapy clinics for professional athletes, including endurance squad members, senior academy riders and Olympic medallists within British Cycling. 
• Kayty Richards (Midwifery) was awarded Outstanding Contribution to Student Affairs in the Student Nursing Times Awards 2022. The award recognises a student who has made an exceptional contribution to student affairs during their time at university and judges were impressed with Kayty’s wide range of activities linked to this.
• Lewis Spencer won the best poster and oral presentation in the ‘Metabolism, Obesity and Diabetes’ category at the British Endocrine Society conference 2021. Lewis won for his work in the LIPOSAX study, which looked at why certain individuals respond better to a particular form of obesity treatment. The judges were impressed by Lewis’ presentation to over 1,200 people and his ability to answer questions about the research.

College of Science and Engineering

• Jake Andrews (Mathematics) and Frederico Rato (Computer Science) presented at the international Building Bridges in STEAM Education in the 21st Century conference in Portugal. Jake presented his newly invented board game designed to teach trigonometry and Frederico shared lessons learned from digital technologies in his course. Both presentations were warmly received by the attendees. 
• A group of second-year Mechanical Engineering students teamed up with transportation company Alstom to take part in the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) Railway Challenge. The challenge involved designing, building and competing a special locomotive against teams from other universities and the rail industry. The team achieved first place in both the refuelling and auto-stop tests and were placed third overall. They were also the top UK University team.
• In May, five Biomedical and Forensic Science students visited the Criminalistic Institute within the Federal District Civil Police in Brasilia (CIFDCP) in Brazil for two weeks as part of the Turing Scheme. During the placement they worked in a professional forensic science environment and assisted in real case work. The students found the experience highly valuable and left confident in their abilities to work in a professional forensic science environment. 
• Three Mechanical and Motorsport Engineering students have been accepted onto the Fantasy Wings programme. The programme offers real networking opportunities, career prospects, mentoring and personal development for women and BAME youth interested in the airline and aviation industries. The students will also have the chance to receive sponsorship for an accredited Private Pilot Licence.
• Gary Dawson (Interior Architecture and Venue Design) won the Chartered Institute of Designers CEP Student prize for his work, including a scout hut/ community centre in Alvaston, which is operated by the Woodland Trust. The awards celebrate student designers across the globe. 
• Our Motorsport Engineering students took part in the Radical SR1 Cup, a unique race series for Radical SR1 cars, and won eight trophies across 14 races. The students travelled to several circuits around the UK and took on a range of professional race team roles.