They had dreams and are now living them.
Czech-born Lenka Stejskal relocated to the UK to work as an au pair but wanted to be a scientist.
Katharine Woodhead began her working life as a swimming pool lifeguard who also ran fitness classes. But now she is super-fit for a career in business after scoring a major success in her degree course at the University of Huddersfield.
Both women have just been awarded Chancellor’s Prizes fro the University - the awards that go to an elite group of students.
Newly-graduated with First Class Honours for her BSc degree in Biochemistry, Lenka earned the highest marks of her cohort and she has earned funding from the Wellcome Trust that enables her to embark on a four-year programme of study and research, culminating in a doctorate.
She has also co-authored her first published academic article and has enjoyed the experience of working at some highly-advanced research facilities.
“I always wanted to do science, but I never had any qualifications,” said Lenka, 32. When she studied for the equivalent of A-levels in the Czech Republic she did not have the confidence to take the science route and did economic history and literature instead.
In 2004 came her move to the UK and after several years – which included the birth of her son Michael, now aged five – she decided to enrol at the University of Huddersfield for a year-long foundation course that gave her a grounding in several scientific disciplines.
After her foundation year, Lenka embarked on a biochemistry degree – a three-year course plus a work placement year, which she spent at the Institute of Cancer Therapeutics in Bradford. She has also worked closely with biochemistry lecturer Dr Richard Bingham, who has a special research focus on Borrelia, the bacterium that spreads the tick-borne Lyme disease, which can have highly serious symptoms.
Business Management graduate Katharine now starts her career in HR for Huddersfield firm Equi-Trek after studying for a BA in Business Management, earning First Class Honours.
While working hard for her degree, Katharine,27, of Holmfirth, also continued to teach fitness classes. This packed schedule meant that she became expert at juggling her work-life balance – and that was just the subject she researched for a dissertation that received an award for being the best of her year. She has been presented with the Oxford University Press Bryman and Bell Prize for Undergraduate Research Methods.
She received her earlier education at Huddersfield Grammar School and Huddersfield New College, where she studied sport, psychology and French. Then she became a lifeguard at Holmfirth Swimming Pool. This led to career as gym instructor and personal trainer.
“I had become self-employed as a personal trainer but it wasn’t quite for me and I wanted a change, so I decided to retrain,” said Katharine.
“It opens doors to all sorts of careers if you do a business management degree.” s
