Bursary supports Georgia on the road to achieving her dreams

A student from the University of Northampton has been awarded a bursary to support her with a place for postgraduate law study.

Georgia Boyd, who studied Law at the University of Northampton, is celebrating being named as the recipient of the Max Engel Memorial Bursary 2021. The bursary which awards £2,000 towards postgraduate study, is accompanied by a two-week placement with Max Engel and Co LLP.

Talking about her decision to study Law, 24-year-old Georgia said: “I was working in medical recruitment before I came to University. Initially, I was a bit nervous about what being a student would be like, especially as I thought I would be slightly older than most other people on the course. I was 21 when I started university. The Law programme attracts students straight from sixth form and mature students, that mix of experience and thinking is good, as you can have in depth debates on legal topics drawing on everyone experiences and views.”

Once she started studying, Georgia threw herself into University life, although she remained living at home in Milton Keynes, the commuting student took advantage of the opportunities, she said: “The Changemaker Hub law fairs and networking opportunities hosted on campus were great to get involved in.”

Georgia spent a lot of time in Northampton outside of the classroom meeting up with peers and finding her self-confidence. She added, “I expected to go to my lectures and go home, I didn’t expect to meet life-long friends with similar aspirations and passions to my own, who pushed and challenged me to become my best self. I also joined the Northampton Students’ Union Law Society, and had the opportunity to build connections with law students in other years at the University at social events.”

Georgia’s final year dissertation inspired her to pursue a more academic career route.  She said: “For me, the Law and Society module from my first year at UON sparked an interest in exploring the social justice side of the law. For my dissertation, I looked at women in pornography and the injustices they face, this felt very empowering and I now feel a massive drive to do more of this. I’m excited to be starting a postgraduate MSc in Socio-Legal Studies, a route I genuinely never would’ve considered before working on my dissertation this year!

“The Max Engel Memorial Bursary award has been invaluable, it means I can afford to start my postgraduate course. I’m very much looking forward to that and feel very thankful for the financial support the bursary gives me. It was incredible to receive such recognition for my efforts at university. The placement has been a huge support for my career. It has given me the chance to use my legal knowledge as well as learning about the role of a solicitor and the day to day running of a law firm.”

Offering advice to students starting at Northampton in September, she said: “Give your time at university everything you’ve got, you get to meet people with such varied perspectives and experiences, learn from that. During my studies, my confidence has grown so much, I came to Northampton with little belief in my academic ability and I have surpassed my own expectations at every hurdle! Bear in mind that help is always available, you only need to ask. Finally, never give up on yourself, if I can do it, you can too.”