University of Exeter Student Ambassador Case Study
Personal Profile
Name – Richard Lawlor
School Attended – Norton Hill School Sixth Form,
Somerset
Subjects studied – A level History, Geography and
Psychology
University attended – University of Exeter
University campus – Streatham, Exeter
Degree subject – Flexible Combined Honours:
Management with History and Industrial Experience
Number of years as a Student Ambassador - 4
Year of graduation – 2012
Current job/employer – Barclays Future Leaders Development Programme
About me –
For me the chance to undertake a tailored course of study which focused on the
subjects and topics that really interest me was perfect. The University of Exeter’s
Flexible Combined Honours scheme offered something unique amongst universities,
giving me a breadth and depth of study that wasn’t available at other universities. To
attend a world-class university with such a great reputation was also a major factor,
along with the quality of life compared to other institutions.
I became a Student Ambassador in my first year, working on the scheme for four years.
For my last year on the scheme I was lucky enough to be awarded the title of Senior
Student Ambassador.
Following graduation I am now on the Barclays Future Leaders Development
Programme, a two year accelerated leadership scheme consisting of four 6-month
placements across different areas of the Barclays business.
An interview with Rich
Had you always planned to go to university?
For me, going to university was considered the norm amongst my groups of friends, so I guess
the honest answer is yes, I had always planned to go to university. However, I wasn’t really as
interested or engaged with the prospect as other people around me were – I wasn’t sure that
further study was what I wanted to do, and I was worried about finding the right subject mix that I
was really passionate about.
What would you say to students who are currently not sure if university is for them?
University is so much more than just learning about a specific subject or discipline, it’s about
getting a life experience over a few years and doing things that you will never be able to do again.
Going to uni is an investment; you just need to make sure that you’re really interested in your
chosen area of study. If you’re unsure of what you want to do, then choose a combined course of
study like I did!
What made you apply to become a University of Exeter Student Ambassador?
I saw the Student Ambassador role as being crucial to my development, both personally and
professionally, and I wanted the opportunity to share my own experiences and learning with
others. I went through a stage where I wasn’t that engaged with uni life; I even thought about
leaving in my first year as I didn’t like the subjects I was studying and wasn’t making the effort to
get involved with any clubs or societies. But this changed as I went through university; the beauty
of my course was that I could juggle the proportions of each subject I chose to study, so I changed
courses slightly going into my second year and started to enjoy it a lot more. I wanted to share
these experiences with prospective students as I know that a lot of them would be going through
similar experiences.
Do you think that being a University of Exeter Student Ambassador contributed to your own
personal development and if so how?
Becoming a Student Ambassador led to me gaining a lot of confidence in meeting new people
and thinking fast on my feet. It helps you learn how to engage with people on all different levels,
enhancing your interpersonal skills. I also found loads of opportunities to hone my leadership
skills, something that proved invaluable to me when I was looking for a graduate job.
What was your highlight of being a Student Ambassador?
My highlight was being offered a Senior Student Ambassador role, especially very early into my
time on the scheme – it showed that I had developed myself and was recognised as someone
capable of helping others to develop their own skills too.
Would you recommend becoming a Student Ambassador to anyone thinking about applying and
why?
I think that Exeter’s Student Ambassador Scheme provides students with a way to develop their
personal and professional skills within a well supported learning environment. The role also
provides a brilliant forum to share your own personal experience with new students. Lastly there’s
so much variety and flexibility in the work available for you to be involved with that you never
get bored and easily fit working around study and the other fun stuff that students should be
doing!
To find out more about the University of Exeter Student
Ambassador scheme visit www.exeter.ac.uk/ambassadors/
To find out more about the work of the University of Exeter
Student Recruitment Office visit www.exeter.ac.uk/teachers