2018 Winners
Overall Student of the Year 2018 winners:
Rhea Kay (Higher education student of the year)
Rhea Kay achieved a first class degree classification in BA (Hons) Contemporary Textiles in 2018, demonstrating her aptitude for hard work, with strong creative ideas and focusing on contemporary design trends. She has been a great advocate for progression within Shetland College UHI, coming through Vocational Pathways (S3 and 4) while she was still as school, then taking the Art and Design NC before progressing to her degree studies. Rhea has also gained sponsorships for her degree collection, and is representing the college and university at the New Designers Graduate Fair 2018. She has also been placed in national and international competitions in the last academic year and has gained placements with commercial companies.
Crisdean Saunders (Further education student of the year)
Crisdean Saunders completed his Horticultural Employability course in order to enhance his chances of securing employment after a period of inactivity. Crisdean slowly built up a routine and engagement with his studies and proved to have a great interest in horticulture, always asking questions in order to further his knowledge. Toward the end of his studies, Crisdean followed up on an advert in his local paper for work setting up allotments in a village and went on to help the local residents grow vegetables for their own consumption. He has a new-found confidence from his studies and has gained employment where he can put everything that he has learned into practice.
James Ellsmoor (Postgraduate student of the year)
James Ellsmoor achieved his MLitt in Island Studies, proving to be an excellent distance-learning student and achieving high grades while travelling the world pursuing his career. He has attended seminars from the Caribbean and South America, as well as England. James is the co-founder and director of Solar Head of State, a non-profit company working in Small Island Developing States to promote access to solar energy by working with local communities and regional governments. Earlier this year, James attended the 7ICEF academic conference in Hawaii presenting his research on innovation in islands and was one of two University of the Highlands and Islands student representatives at the RETI conference of island universities in Okinawa. He will present again at the ISISA conference in Terschelling and has been invited to speak at conferences including the Smart Island World Congress in Mallorca, Caribbean Clean Energy Finance Summit and Haiti Tech Summit.
Students of the Year 2018
Individual partner winners are listed below.
Argyll College UHI
Higher education: Helen McGuigan, HND Administration
Further education: John MacPhee, NC Computing with Digital Media
Highland Theological College UHI
Higher education: Robert Nicholson, BA (Hons) Theological Studies
Inverness College UHI
Higher education: Andrew Smith, BSc (Hons) Psychology
Further education: Nazia Ali, NC6 Childhood Practice
Lews Castle College UHI
Higher education: Lisa Morrison, BSc (Hons) Psychology
Further education: Crisdean Saunders, Horticultural Employability
Moray College UHI
Higher education: Philip Forster, BSc (Hons) Interactive Media
North Highland College UHI
Higher education: Barry Gannon, BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Orkney College UHI
Higher education: William Lowe, BA (Hons) Archaeology
Further education: Vikki Thomson, NC Administration including NPA Administration office skills and services
Perth College UHI
Higher education: Gemma Gourlay, BA (Hons) Social Science
Sabhal Mòr Ostaig UHI
Higher education: Isabelle Flower, Cert HE Gàidhlig agus Conaltradh
Scottish Association for Marine Science UHI
Higher education: Honours class year 2017/18, BSc (Hons) Marine Science
Shetland College UHI
Higher education: Rhea Kay, BA (Hons) Contemporary Textiles
Further education: Tegan Patterson, NC Early Education and Child Care
West Highland College UHI
Higher education: Kasha MacKay, HNC Social Services
Further education: Joanne Hercus, NC6 Early Education and Child Care
Department of Nursing and Midwifery
Higher education: Aimie Davies, BSc Nursing
Judged partnership-wide
Postgraduate: James Ellsmoor, MLitt Island Studies