I loved A level Biology and Geography equally at College and this helped me find my way to Environmental Science at university. The links were also there in my Geography coursework, where I compared carbon sequestration of trees in an ancient woodland and a plantation.

My time at College coincided with the peak ‘Covid years’, but I played for the College Netball team and enjoyed that. When it came to my EPQ, I turned the pandemic into an opportunity, writing my research project on the question: “To what extent will the COVID-19 pandemic be a turning point for climate change control?”. Doing this helped to confirm my interest in Environmental Science, while my EPQ helped me learn important referencing skills prior to uni.

Currently, I’m at the University of Southampton doing an Environmental Science integrated master’s: I was enjoying my course so much that I changed from the 3-year BSc to a 4-year MSci. In my free time, I captain the university’s Ladies BUCS tennis team.

Between my third and fourth year, I worked at Mott MacDonald – a civil engineering company – as a Sustainability and Climate Change summer intern in the Carbon Reduction Team in London. I worked on projects calculating carbon emissions and helped to monitor the company’s progress towards their net zero goals. It’s been a real highlight and I discovered that I really liked working for a large company, surrounded by professionals. Having enjoyed this working environment, the experience has definitely helped me figure out what types of jobs I want to apply for next year: a graduate role in sustainability with a focus on carbon emissions.

In terms of advice for current College students, I’d say you are allowed to change your opinion on what you do and don’t like, and it’s important to stay open-minded and try new things. When I was at College I hated the idea of working with data and any exam question that started with ‘Analyse this trend…’ always filled me with dread, but working with data is something I now enjoy. Being committed and reliable is also so important and you can achieve so much if you just keep showing up.

The field of sustainability is so big and it’s growing, so I’d really recommend looking into a career in this field if you like problem-solving and care about what the future of our world looks like.

Hannah Reader

Reigate College: 2019-2021

Higher Education: MSci Environmental Science, University of Southampton