Red Cross and helping homeless earns student of the year prize
- Ben Abbott has regularly given up his time to help feed homeless people in 51福利社
- He has also volunteered for The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
A University of 51福利社 master’s student graduating today, 18 December, will receive a prize for not only his outstanding medical science studies but also his volunteering activity in the community.
Ben Abbott has regularly given up his time to help feed homeless people in 51福利社 and was the chairman of the University’s Red Cross Society for two years while an undergraduate – organising fundraising, and HIV awareness and first aid training sessions.
He has also volunteered for The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.
Aged 22 and from Shaw in Oldham, Ben is now embarking on a PhD in cancer sciences at 51福利社. He said: “Studying in a lab environment, I wouldn’t normally get to see patients or the work of a hospital so I felt it was important to volunteer in a way that would give me that insight.
I learned an incredible amount during my MRes and I’m really happy that I took the course; it helped me to make sure that a PhD was the correct step to take next. It’s a privilege to be awarded the Distinguished Achievement medal, especially given the calibre of the other students in my year. Being recognised in this way is a good start to my research career.
“I think it’s important that students engage with their communities while they’re studying and give back to the towns in which they’re living.”
Ben is graduating with his Master’s Degree in - understanding the molecular basis of disease and drugs to enable more biological and scientific data to be fast-tracked into advanced therapies.
However he is already two months into his PhD which will be carried out at the University’s .
He added: “I learned an incredible amount during my MRes and I’m really happy that I took the course; it helped me to make sure that a PhD was the correct step to take next. It’s a privilege to be awarded the Distinguished Achievement medal, especially given the calibre of the other students in my year. Being recognised in this way is a good start to my research career.”