29/1/2008

News

Student is top fresher

A WALTON student has been named one of the best freshers at the University of Reading.

Damien King has been given £2,000 towards the cost of his first-year studies under the entrance scholarship scheme, which started in 2006.

This year, grants have been awarded to more than 100 entrants into the university — undergraduates who have come top of their class at entrance level (ie, A-Level or equivalent) for a range of degrees including agriculture, animal sciences, microbiology, maths, chemistry, food biosciences, pharmacy, natural sciences, modern languages and finance.

Damien, 19, of Ellesmere Place, Walton, is now studying for a degree in applied computer science.

He said: “I was awarded an entrance scholarship for achieving three As in my A-Levels.

“During primary school, I became ill and was absent for a few years as a result. When I recovered and rejoined school, I was put back one year and had obviously missed out on a lot of work so I knew this meant I would have to push myself harder than usual if I wanted to get decent results.

“I have kept this attitude, and it has really paid off.

“I am really enjoying university life and am managing to keep a healthy balance between social and academic sides.”

The university vice-chancellor, Professor Gordon Marshall, said: “At Reading, we commit more than 40% of our increased tuition fee income to our bursaries and scholarships programme. This is because we believe in making university accessible to everyone who can benefit from higher education.”

First printed in: News & Mail Series