Alexa St.John Palmer

BSc Anthropology 2016

What did you enjoy about your degree programme?

The mix of social and biological teachings and uncovering where the overlap is between the two.

Tell us about the award you have received. What does this award mean to you?

I received the award for Best Academic Performance of an Anthropology Third Year from the School of Social Science and International Studies. It was really wonderful to be unanimously nominated by the department for this award, as the icing on the cake of gaining my first, it justifies all my hard work and effort as well as the enthusiasm I've put into my studies.

What has been the highlight of your time at Exeter?

Having the opportunity to explore not only the wealth of knowledge opened up to me, but also myself and through this, finding out what I am capable of.

What will you miss the most about university?

The sense of purpose and discovery studying gave me, but also the community at university. I've loved being surrounded by students and the general hubbub of campus and I will really miss that feeling.

What advice would you give to current and future students?

If you struggle initially, don't panic. Seek help, listen to advice, find out where your strengths and talents lie and try to align your work to them. However, don't be afraid to be creative and back your own ideas. As long as you can justify your thinking, your lecturers should listen. Perhaps most important, do stretch yourself and your thinking and do try your best, but try to be realistic about what your best in that particular circumstance is: pick your battles, know your limits, and keep yourself healthy. Planning flexibly three weeks at a time has really helped me achieve this, so I would strongly recommend you develop a planning system that works for you. You can't always give 100% to everything, so plan your time and your energy to make sure you can as much as you can when you need to. And if you can, enjoy what you do - that makes everything easier!

What are your plans now that you have graduated?

I'm applying for an MSc in Biomedical Engineering starting 2017 and hope to gain a PhD at some point in the future, working in rehabilitation, disability, healthcare and/or academia. However, at the moment, I'm having a rest.