HMC student recognised for overcoming challenges to achieve academic excellence

Elizabeth Histed with Keith Fletcher Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement

Elizabeth Histed pictured with the Keith Fletcher Outstanding Academic Achievement Award at the House of Commons

AIM Qualifications and Assessment Group

A Harris Manchester College undergraduate has been awarded a prestigious national prize for students who have overcome significant challenges to achieve academic excellence. Elizabeth Histed, who is studying English at HMC, was presented with the Keith Fletcher Outstanding Academic Achievement Award at a ceremony on 2 April at the House of Commons.   

The Keith Fletcher Awards honour the achievements of an outstanding cohort of students drawn from the thousands who study for Access to Higher Education (HE) Diplomas each year. Delivered by colleges across England and Wales, these courses prepare people without traditional qualifications for study at university, enabling them to progress into higher education.   

The winner of the Outstanding Academic Achievement Award is selected by AIM Qualifications and Assessment Group, the awarding body behind the Access to HE Diploma. 

In reflecting on her achievement, Histed outlined her route to HMC: “University always seemed like a distant aspiration for me, particularly because I was unable to take my GCSE exams as a teenager. I was unwell in this period and trying to cope with the tumult of foster care, and unable to go to school. Following a move to an old people’s home at 18, I moved into a ‘shared lives’ family home at 20 which allowed me the security I needed to feel safe and apply to college. In spite of having no educational qualifications, my tutor Julianne Ward accepted me onto the Access to Higher Education diploma, equivalent to three A-Levels, alongside a GCSE in English Language. Here, my love for literature rejuvenated, and in that my desire of attending Oxford.” 

She went on to reflect on the significance of her award: “I am truly so thankful to have been awarded first place. The opportunity to have studied on the Access course has changed my direction of life completely. This award has shown me how much I have achieved because of the chance that Julianne gave me, pushing me to improve and consider options that at first did not occur to me. The diploma is life changing.” 

Histed also commented on her experience so far at Harris Manchester: “As a mature student, I have found HMC to be welcoming and friendly, with a vibrant and supportive atmosphere at its heart. The people I have met have made my university experience wonderful. From friends to tutors, I have found the college environment to be one full of encouragement.”