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Hello
Welcome to the
first alumni e-newsletter of the year. It is jam-packed, sharing
some our university highlights from the over the past few months and
loads of news from your fellow alumni! If you have a story you'd like
us to share, please let us know using the update-your-details form!
And as always,
please get
in touch if you have any ideas,
questions or feedback.
2022
is shaping up to be an exciting year for UHI and we can't wait to share
more with you soon!
Shoot, Submit, Spend!
We need your
help creating a film which celebrates the diversity of our students,
staff, alumni and 80+ locations - from wild landscapes, islands and
oceans, historic towns, buzzing cities and cutting-edge research
parks.
Dip into your
old phone videos or shoot something new. Whether it’s work or play,
studying indoors or exploring the great outdoors. We’re looking for
anything that captures your life at UHI, or living across the
Highlands and Islands, Moray and Perthshire and we’re offering a £50
for every clip we use! (max £100 per person) Please bear in mind that
we want to see YOU in the video too!
Are
you a commercial videographer or drone pilot with footage from in and
around our campuses and learning centres? Please get in touch to
discuss commercial opportunities via socialmedia@uhi.ac.uk.
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Entries are now open for the 2022 UHI business
competition
Budding
entrepreneurs with a business idea are invited to apply, with £8000
in prize money up for grabs.
The
competition is open to anyone living in the Highlands and Islands,
Moray and Perthshire. Entries will be shortlisted to 15 and finalists
will be invited to meet the competition judges to discuss their ideas
further on finals day on Wednesday 25 May.
Run by CREATE,
part of the centre for remote and sustainable communities based at
Inverness College UHI, the competition encourages enterprise and
innovation by supporting people to take their first steps on the road
to starting their own business. All finalists will receive feedback
and support from some of the region’s top entrepreneurs and business
advisors to take their idea forward.
The closing date is 12 noon on Wednesday 23
March.
So, what are you waiting for -
ready, set, go!
Pictured - 2020 winner, UHI alumnus, Matej
Papp, a personal trainer from Inverness, who along with Ahmed Nassar
was awarded £1000 for 'Boxfluence' and a portable boxing ring,
GoSparTM.
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Graduate Career Advantage Scotland
The GCAS
Talent Pool is a new government-funded initiative which supports
recent graduates living in Scotland to find rewarding employment.
They offer access to high-quality paid internships by collaborating
with employers, universities, and other key agencies.
• Are you
unemployed or in a job that doesn’t match your skills or ambitions?
• Did you graduate from your latest qualification in summer 2019, or
more recently?
• Are you aged 29 or under?
• Do you have the right to work in Scotland?
Find out more about Eligibility
Finding a next
step that’s right for you after university can be difficult. The
pandemic has added a layer of economic and personal upheaval and
uncertainty. This programme of support has your specific
circumstances in mind.
By signing up
to the GCAS Talent Pool you will gain exclusive access to graduate
internships including regular updates about new and upcoming
opportunities, careers advice and support, and you can opt in to
more.
Apply
to join the Talent Pool today. This could change your life!
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Research shows mental health impacts of
Covid-19 on NHS Highland staff
Research carried out by a team from
the University of the Highlands and Islands and NHS Highland has
examined the impact of COVID-19 on the mental wellbeing of health and
social care workers in the area.
Read more
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Funding for research into mental health and
wellbeing on Scottish islands
The Scottish Rural Health
Partnership has received Scottish Government funding to research and
increase awareness about the mental health and wellbeing of people
living on Scottish islands. The partnership, hosted by UHI, was
awarded £4,488 from the Healthy
Islands Fund that is managed by Inspiring
Scotland. The fund supports the delivery of the Scottish
Government’s National Islands Plan, notably its aim ‘to improve and
promote health, social care and wellbeing for those living in
Scottish island communities’.
Read more
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SSE Renewables £550k contribution energises
university's STEM outreach programme
An independent report has found that
a UHI outreach programme has helped young people across the Highlands
gain better access to vital education in science, technology,
engineering and maths (STEM).
Read more
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First recipients of the John Preston Music
Awards announced
At the end of
2021, we were delighted to announce Scott Rough and Hannah Campbell
as the first winners of the UHI John Preston Music awards. The awards are funded through the Liam Colgan Music
Fund on behalf of John Preston's widow Roz, who has established a
memorial fund in his memory. John started his career working in
an Edinburgh record store before rising to became one of the most
senior figures in the UK music industry.
Read more
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Elgin student scoops inaugural Peter May prize
A short story
of three researchers trapped in a sea of insects who quickly succumb
to the inevitably of their fate is the winner of the first Peter May
fiction prize!
Read
more
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Digital health study aims to help
pre-operation patients
UHI and NHS
Highland are planning to launch a new project to discover if a digital
treatment can help patients on the waiting list for knee and hip
operations. The study will see 100 patients from across the Highlands
use Joint Academy, a digital treatment app developed by a Swedish
digital health company, over a six-month period.
Read more
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Into a bit of wild swimming?
UHI has
launched a new project to develop an online resource for wild
swimmers.
SwimWild,
a company which offers open water coaching, adventures and events, is
working with Moray College UHI’s computing and digital media
department to create a portal where enthusiasts can find information
about wild swimming locations around Scotland. The resource will
feature reviews of swimming locations, including advice on
accessibility and difficulty.
Read more
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Did you study a music related course?
The Liam
Colgan Music Fund would really appreciate your views on the issues
faced by young musicians in our area and the types of support most
needed. Please complete this 5 minute survey, to help determine where they should best direct
their funds. As a thank you, those who agree to be contacted,
will be entered into a grand prize draw later this year (details will
be announced in due course.)
Complete
the survey
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Alumni ambassadors
We
are looking for a wide variety of alumni ambassadors, who have studied
a range of different courses, at all our partner college locations.
Interested? Find out more here!
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Meet our newest ambassador:
Ellen Grieve
BA
(Hons) Applied Music, 2021
Ellen is currently studying part time for her MA Music
and the Environment at Orkney College UHI whilst working full time for NHS Orkney.
"I enjoy helping people, it is what I do
all day every day. I have loved my time at UHI, trying to ensure that
I enjoyed every minute of my studies. Applied Music was great. I
spent five years on the Orkney College Management Committee and the
Learning, Teaching and Quality Committee as well which gave me a
great insight into how the college and UHI work."
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Alumni news
Thank you to
everyone who shares their news with us! We love hearing what you're up to!
Sadly, we don't
have room to feature them all, but here are just a few:
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Blair Coron
BA (Hons) Popular Music, 2014, Perth College UHI
We’re
delighted to share Blair's film ‘Cairn’. Funded by Creative Scotland – it is a collection of
new music, set to archival recordings of those who once lived in the
Scottish Highlands and Islands discussing moments of childhood,
folklore and people. This will be the first of two parts, a filmed
cinematic live performance and then a following album, containing
more stories and music, shortly after.
"This has been such a joy to create. The
voices living on through here have been such close companions of mine
over the last two years. They provide a feeling of comfort and home.
I hope they will be your companion too. - Blair Coron
Blair also applied to use the Made in Scotland
trademark for this project which is free for all UHI alumni to use,
if you want to find out more head over to our website.
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Alumni
Spotlight: Kaytie Black
After
graduating with a First-Class Honours degree in BA (Hons) Art and
Contemporary Practices at our Perth College UHI
campus, she shares her inspiring story with us.
"I
have always had a love for art, as it is my own kind of therapy.
After the death of my sister Megan in 2013, I found art was a way of
helping myself to express in a way without having to speak about it.
Since graduating, I have successfully obtained a job down at Perth
and Kinross Council doing Art for Therapy with young people coming
out of the care system. This is genuinely the perfect job, and I am
so lucky to have secured this whilst coming to the end of my last
year."
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Dr Mandy Haggith
PgDip, Tertiary and Higher Education, 2020, Lews Castle College UHI
Dr
Mandy
Haggith,
literature and creative writing lecturer based at Inverness College
UHI has joined other leading writers on arts, history, philosophy,
science, religion and beyond, in BBC Radio 3 ‘The Essay’,
Listen
to Mandy’s essays ‘Pytheas and the Sea’ and ‘Maidens, Matriarchs and Crones’, both based on the research for her historical novel
trilogy, as part of a series about the Iron Age, called ‘Tribal
Britain’.
Find out more about Mandy's writing
and teaching on her website!
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Connie Flynn, B.A. (Hons) Contemporary
Textiles, 2015, Shetland College UHI
Connie has led
the creation of a protest banner demanding an end to violence against
women.
Funded by Arts
Council England and working in partnership with Norfolk Libraries,
'Stitching Our Stories' was inspired by the long history of the women
creating textiles as protest and as a response to the increase of
gender-based violence during the pandemic. Twenty-five women
worked collaboratively on the project, and officially unveiled the
banner on 25th November, coinciding with White Ribbon Day,
the campaign to end male violence against women.
“I hope that the Stitching Our Stories textile
banner with the flowers, candles and quotes becomes a visual shout
and quiet whisper for peace and hope in the future.” – Connie Flynn
Read more
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Rachel Jutková
BA (Hons) Fine Art, 2021
Shetland College UHI and Moray School of Art
“I
cannot say how glad I am that I chose to study in Scotland,
especially at such a unique institution as UHI! I had the best
experience with the best tutors, studying both at Shetland College
UHI and later Moray School of Art. I am sure that 'one good thing
leads to another' (exactly as my painting confirms) and that my
future studies will continue as a natural extension to what I've
learned at UHI. Hopefully, I'll be able to return to Scotland someday
and reconnect with the places and people I've had the chance to visit
and meet. It was fantastic, thank you! The image is me in the
painting studio, on the first day of my MA degree course in
Contemporary Painting in Slovakia - my home country.”
Visit
Rachel's Instagram to see more of her work.
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Exploring the work of two alumni, and their
journey as professional composers.
Eamonn Watt
and Ewan MacKay both studied with UHI on the BA (Hons) Applied Music
and MA Music and the Environment courses, and have been forging
successful careers as young composers ever since.
In
this FutureMe podcast episode, they talk to Simon Bradley about their work to date,
and life in the creative industries after graduation!
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Bill Skeoch
MA Music and the Environment, 2018, West Highland College UHI
Please watch this lovely video from alumnus Bill Skeoch, where he shares his student
experience. The MA Music and the Environment provides a foundation
for musicians to develop new paths for creative, entrepreneurial and
environmentally responsible endeavours. In addition, the course
equips musicians to work within their own community, establishing
effective and successful contributions to their local economy.
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Alumni Spotlight: Mati Fleszar.
"I studied for five years at Perth
College UHI. I did my Hospitality Level 1 all the way up until my HNC
qualification in Professional Cookery. I currently work at the
Mercure Perth. I'm enjoying it a lot and learning my way up to be a
Sous Chef soon. I have created an Instagram account @chefmati1992, where I showcase all the
skills I have learnt on my path, both at college and work"
Read more
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Ealasaid Nicleoid
BEng (Hons) Mechanical Engineering, Lews Castle College UHI
“As
part of my 4th-year project, I worked with a local engineering
company. This was hugely beneficial applying what we were taught in a
real-world situation.”
Ealasaid
now works as a Graduate Engineer with Ocean
Kinetics Ltd alongside her role as a part-time Firefighter
with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
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Alumni benefits
All alumni have access
to a range of benefits and services.
If you can offer
a discount to your fellow alumni or have any suggestions to enhance the
range of benefits we offer - we'd love to
hear from you!
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Careers support for life
Iain Eisner
and Helen Anton from the Careers and Employability Centre are here to
support you to develop and manage your future career, providing you
with the ability to book guidance appointments, search the Job Shop,
book a mock interview and upload your CV or application form for
feedback.
Simply register with FutureMe.
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Alumni access to e-Resources
As one of our
alumni, you can access a range of free e-Resources to assist with
your lifelong learning after leaving university.
To
access, please register here.
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Your privacy is important to us
The university
is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with
the laws concerning data protection and personal information.
This privacy notice explains how your personal information is processed and
used by the university.
You can
unsubscribe from this email at any time, just click on the link below,
but we'd be sad to see you go...
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Ness Walk,
Inverness, IV3 5SQ
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