The awards ceremony for the first-ever Student Experience Awards took place on Tuesday 6 June and was an evening filled with excitement, inspiration, and a true sense of pride.
Nominated students and staff hosts were gathered on Highfield Campus, outside of Turner Sims, to announce the winners and celebrate the remarkable achievements and contributions made by our outstanding students outside of their studies.
Congratulations to all our winners and those who participated in the Student Experience Awards!
Read the fantastic stories of each of our winners and take a look at the photos below.
2023 winners
| One Southampton Student Award | Khairah Boukhatem | As part of over ten societies, Khairah has been integral to connecting communities in the city to the Southampton cultural scene. From interning with October Books, bringing UnionFilms back to life post-pandemic, mentoring students through Ignite Your Success and volunteering for the Heritage Fund project, Khairah truly celebrates Southampton’s diverse culture. |
| Student Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Award | Niketa Gandhi | Niketa has been an advocate in promoting EDI at the University as a committee member of the ‘ECS Empower’ society who organises events, workshops, and hackathons for helping under-represented ECS students to voice their opinions and ideas. In her time at university, Niketa has worked with committee members from Southampton University’s Women in Engineering Society and Google Developer Club Southampton to hold an “Allies in Leadership” conference to educate people on EDI and the promotion of collaborative environments to generate creative and original ideas. |
| Sustainability Champion Award | Evelyn Chen | Evelyn is a previous Worley COP26 competition winner after assembling a team to devise a product idea that converts body heat into electricity via nanotechnology. Evelyn was then offered a finance internship at Worley in the sustainable projects department, where she contributed to global multimillion-dollar initiatives. Evelyn also volunteered and spearheaded the construction of an urban garden that grows fresh food for the most vulnerable residents in her local area. |
| Outstanding Leadership Award | Joseph Haddad | Joseph has been the Lead for Wessex Critical Care Programme this year. Wessex CCP is a large student-run organisation which covers the South Coast and teaches critical care to undergraduate students and first aid to the public. Joseph has led Wessex CCP from strength to strength since the pandemic, with their group of volunteers doubling and interest from specialists increasing. He inspires everyone he meets at the events and is able to get people excited for what is often seen as a difficult speciality. |
| Student Enterprise Award | Tamara Ivancova | While studying Aeronautical Engineering, Tamara founded Amara Automotive, a company focused on changing the way we commute. By producing an e-bike that minimises travel time, cost, and emissions, Tamara has shown the ability to translate her technical expertise into practical solutions that benefit society and the environment. Her innovative and sustainable approach to transportation has already earned her prestigious accolades and grants to keep working on her business, while her dedication and tenacity have inspired others to join her mission. |
| Sport Scholar of the Year | Rebecca Coles | Rebecca has consistently demonstrated exemplary commitment to professional sailing while balancing the demand to travel abroad, alongside her Politics and International Relations degree. Her recent performances at international match racing events have particularly stood out, pushing her status to the next level, including her recent success at the World Women’s Match Racing Championships earlier this year. She has also pursued foiling sailing, with previous trials for the new Athena Pathway Programme led by Hannah Mills OBE, designed to fast-track female athletes into professional sailing. Rebecca also has upcoming events in the Moth Foiling class. |
| Global Impact Award | Ananya Sharma and Phuong (Linh) An | International Student Officers, Ananya and Linh, are responsible for maintaining the University’s international social media platforms while acting as student advocates and ambassadors. The role includes broadcasting achievements in the community, promoting opportunities, and showcasing the student experience to the international audience. Ananya and Linh both have extensive experience, digital techniques and skills, coupled with a passion to promote the University and support our international students. |
| Student Ambassador of the Year | Ronnie Beal | Within his role Ronnie has led numerous shifts and projects, where he has shown great leadership, compassion, and resilience. Throughout his time working as a Lead Student Community Ambassador, Ronnie has shown just how significant the impact of working with student staff can be, and how valuable the work of our student ambassadors is. During interviews for Lead Ambassadors, several applicants named Ronnie as an example of positive leadership, discussing how he openly communicates throughout a shift, leaving ambassadors feeling supported and championed in their work. |
| Student Ambassador of the Year | Velina Valcheva | Velina has been a student ambassador for most of her time at the University and at the start of the year became a Lead Ambassador. She puts all her energy and enthusiasm into her work and has left a lasting impact on variety of students that she has helped and supported during difficult times. Velina has also provided some invaluable feedback that has positively shaped the development of the Student Community Ambassador programme. She is a great support and lead at various events, such as Welcome Week, graduations and student wellbeing and has a clear passion and enthusiasm for supporting the University and its students. |
| University of Southampton Recognition Award | Iona Bateman | Iona was shortlisted across five award categories and nominated within six categories in total. Throughout her time at university, Iona has made a lasting impression on both students and staff and shown enthusiasm in everything she puts her mind to. Her peers stated that she is a ray of sunshine, never seems to stand still for a minute without having a new cause to champion, is dedicated to ensuring students have the best experience possible and is passionate about equality and support for disabilities across the University. Not only does she dedicate her spare time to various causes and societies, such as being the Physiotherapy Course Representative, a member of the Student Co-Design Panel and the Student Advisory Board as well as Vice Chair of the Disability Network, to name a few. She has also represented the University at Florence Nightingale Foundation regional council meetings, attended the United Nations Commission on the status of women, and contributed to the University’s work on International Women’s Day. |
Look out for the winners’ reactions and interview videos coming to SUSSED and the University’s social media channels over the next couple of weeks.
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