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9 Dec 2009 14:33:29
Research student Jo Chapillon can’t get enough of the University of Bedfordshire - this will be the sixth festive season she has spent connected with the Bedford campus.
Jo said: “The opportunities have been here and so has the motivation. The lecturers have been inspiring and I get on really well with all of them; they’re great!
“Bedford is a small campus compared with some other universities. I enjoy walking around and knowing people and being able to say ‘hello’. It’s also important that people are easy to find and that’s the case here.”
Bedfordshire born and bred, Jo completed her A-levels at Wootton Upper School before becoming a secretary. After progressing to a PA role at Cranfield University, and aged 23, she decided a career change was necessary.
Jo started a Sport and Exercise Science degree course “on a whim” and did not regret it as she finished with a 2:1 with honours.
She was then offered a part-time role as a lab technician at Bedford for 25 hours a week which she combined with completing a Masters degree, passing an MSc in Physical Activity and Wellbeing.
Then, in September 2008, she started a PhD in Cardiac Physiology, which focuses on the ‘effective exercise on cardiac structure and function’. Although Jo has stopped working as a lab technician while she works on her PhD, she is still employed part-time by the University carrying out laboratory demonstrations.
Her PhD is due to be completed in September 2011, meaning Jo will have been at Bedford for seven years in total!
Jo, who lives in Lidlington and is now 28, said: “I thoroughly enjoyed my degree and I also like the diversity of being in the lab doing practical sport science testing.
“Being a little older when I first started studying, I appreciate it all a bit more now. I had to make some sacrifices and I’ve always worked hard at my studies.”
Latest news» 2009» December» Our Jo's just fab in the lab
