Five students attended the event, all from Queen Mary, and Sonal Jain was on the panel of speakers alongside Matt Western MP, Lisa Roberts from Exeter and Paul Kett from the Department for Education. The Education and Skills for Growth report emphasises the different pathways students can take at Russell Group universities, including apprenticeships. Sonal spoke about how much she was enjoying her time at Queen Mary, and the value of balancing her studies here with time applying her learning on an apprenticeship at Goldman Sachs.
Sonal said: “It was a pleasure to be invited to speak at this important event and it was delightful sharing with MPs and university representatives my degree apprenticeship experience with Goldman Sachs, representing Queen Mary alongside other students.”
Dr Tim Bradshaw, Chief Executive of the Russell Group, added: “Our universities are determined to always push boundaries and innovate so our students are learning the skills to succeed in a modern, future facing workplace. It was great to be able to show this in our new report and even better to have a student like Sonal in the room who could talk about her experiences and show the audience that this mission isn’t just words.
“We wanted to highlight collaborations like those between Queen Mary University of London and employers like Goldman Sachs or PwC, because they are creating courses that mean students benefit from a world class education and a hands-on workplace experience. This is just one way our universities are producing the pipeline of skilled individuals that employers need.”
Sonal and her fellow students are fantastic ambassadors for both Queen Mary and for the opportunities offered by a Russell Group education.