Robert Tomback (Winner of PSA Student of the Year)
Robert is a truly exceptional student. He has immersed himself in a wide range of activities to enhance his employability. His passion for personal development shone through at application and interview stage. He skilfully articulated his skills and achievements to give a flawless interview on the PSA (Advanced) pathway. Every employer and staff member that has met Robert, during his time on the PSA, has been impressed with his enthusiasm and professionalism. This makes him an excellent ambassador for Birmingham.
Robert has been involved with a range of activities whilst at Birmingham, including:
- Completing a variety of Law internships; and participation in debating and mooting activities within his academic department
- Playing for the Table Tennis First Team, and progressing to Club Captain
- Holding the position of Head Football Coach at Camp America, progressing to Director of Athletics in the following year
- Over 11 years of football coaching experience to young people in local schools
- A range of volunteering experiences including: a volunteer placement as an Assistant Medic Volunteer in Israel; volunteering in a Youth Leadership Programme in the position of Mentor; and volunteering in an Elderly Care Home.
- A variety of student representation activities including: holding the position of Guild Councillor; and representing Birmingham as an NUS Conference Delegate.
It was a combination of these activities, and his commitment to making the most of the opportunities afforded to him whilst at Birmingham, which secured him the title of PSA Student of the Year. He is truly an exceptional student, and an excellent example of an ambassador for Birmingham.
Robert’s comments on his PSA experiences were “The professionalism of the PSA programme equipped me with an enhanced skill set, bridging the gap on the learning journey between University and my future career, helping to improve my employability.”
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Joanne Grainger
Joanne showed extraordinary dedication to developing her employability through community action and volunteering activities. She made a real contribution to the community around her, and her passion and dedication for her work was summarised during the PSA (Advanced) interview, when she said “I am graduating not just as a student but also as a member of the community”.
In addition to her History degree, Joanne has undertaken the following opportunities:
- The Social Action representative for the University of Birmingham Jewish Society
- Volunteered in Ghana for three months for the development charity Tzedek as a Primary School Teacher. Joanne then progressed to becoming a Tzedek representative in the UK; including completing a charity run raising over £2000 for the organisation
- Completed an internship in Israel for two months working in a kindergarten for children with visual impairments as well as other disabilities
- Volunteered at a local Elderly Care Home for all three years of her study.
- A variety of student representation activities, notably being elected for the role of Non-Sabbatical Officer with responsibility for Community Action, for the Guild of Students
- Member of the Elections committee on the Guild of Students
- Holding the position of History Guild councillor for two years
- Jewish representative for the Three faiths forum.
- Member of the West Midlands Jewish Chaplaincy Board.
When asked about what activities she felt were most valuable to her during her time at Birmingham she responded with: “…the variety of activities I have participated in shows many sides to my character and will all help benefit my employability in the future. The activities within the local Birmingham community however have a special place in my heart. My time as the social action representative, old age home volunteer and the community action officer have really connected me to the residents in Birmingham and made me appreciate the incredible opportunities we have on our doorsteps”.
This high level of perception and passion convinced the short-listing panel of Joanne’s incredible commitment to developing herself, and those around her.
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Kate Clarkson
Kate is incredibly enthusiastic and passionate about a career in the area of communications. She demonstrated involvement in an impressive range of activities to enable her to pursue her career of choice. She expertly articulated her experiences and skills to the PSA (Advanced) panel to demonstrate how she could meet the requirements of her future career aspirations successfully. Those experiences included:
- Securing a place as a ‘reviewer’ on a newspaper in Scotland; in addition to being the youngest person to secure such a position
- A regular contributor to Redbrick newspaper; including progressing to the position of ‘Editor’ for the Lifestyle online section
- Successfully gaining work experience on the BBC’s ‘Doctors’ television series.
- Undertaking work experience for a regional newspaper
- Completed a work experience internship at ‘Sleek MakeUp’.
- Held the position as ‘Alumni Communications Assistant’ within the Development and Alumni Office at the University
- Undertook the role as ‘Team Leader’ for the International Student’s Welcome Week for two consecutive years
- An active member of the Dance Society, progressing to the position of Treasurer
- Undertook part-time paid positions during her time at Birmingham.
When asked about her commitment to finding work experience Kate commented “I think if anything, what work experience has done for me, is to show employers that I am very much interested in the working world. That I have actually gone out there, and I have made that first step in finding work experience, to show employers that I am self motivated and determined to pursue a successful career and reach my dream job.''
The panel were particularly impressed with Kate’s commitment to securing positions in a competitive field; and her ability to articulate her personal development as a result of these opportunities.
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James Cordell
James is an incredibly perceptive individual, who really understood the importance of undertaking extra-curricular activities to enhance his own employability. He successfully brought to life the skills and self awareness gained from his internships at PricewaterhouseCoopers, and his passion for sporting activities, to highlight his employability to the interview panel. A summary of his extra-curricular activities includes:
- Securing internships with PricewaterhouseCoopers
- Completing an internship as a football coach with North America Soccer Camps
- Performing as Campus Ambassador for both PricewaterhouseCoopers and North America Soccer Camps.
- Holding a position as a Lifeguard at the University; and successfully passing lifeguarding qualifications.
- Held the elected positions of Treasurer, Club Captain and First Team Captain for the University’s football team.
- Successfully achieving the British Universities and Colleges Ambassador Award for 250 hours of sports volunteering.
- Holding the position as Social Sciences Society Treasurer.
- Elected to the position of Halls Sports Officer.
When asked about the PSA James commented on the power of the feedback from the PSA Team towards his personal development “It is the feedback which is so important; at the end of the day, you know what you can say, but what is it that’s making the difference between that last few percentage of people who maybe have got the same skills? What are you doing that could boost you above them? I think that’s the great thing about the PSA, the honesty of the feedback, the critical aspect. Its been brilliant”.
James was consistently trying to improve his skills and experiences whilst at Birmingham. His ability to really understand what he had achieved, and be able to relate that to the world of professional work, was exceptional.
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