FROM THE NEWS DESSC | ARTICLE
LIFE BEYOND DESSC
I
t only feels like yesterday that I was frantically cramming for one of my final A Level exams outside the DESC Auditorium. How time has flown! To tell you how I got here, I should start at the beginning. My seven years at DESC were full of incredible teaching, endless opportunities to grow and develop, and an extensive list of amazing memories, ranging from performances onstage to reviving the College’s Eco Club with all kinds of new ideas and sustainability initiatives. Not to mention exams, tutor time and the usual things you’d expect to go through whilst at secondary school! I faced my fair share of challenges, as all students do. I went through many dilemmas – what to study at GCSE and A Level being the big one, but genuine support and guidance from teachers and peers got me through. Managing A Levels with university applications, Deputy Head Girl responsibilities and other ECA commitments in Year 13 was also challenging, but I learnt many skills, from multitasking to working under pressure, which prepared me well for university. The support did not stop there. A conversation with Mr Hall in a GCSE History lesson, where he encouraged me to apply to the University of Oxford, ended up in countless hours of interview preparation with the Science and Sixth Form departments. I can still vividly remember opening my acceptance letter in the Sixth Form
40
FROM THE NEWS DESSC
Ameena Malak | DESC Alumni office, heart racing as everyone peered over, and seeing the word ‘congratulations’. Oxford was not at all what I initially expected. I was thrown into a rigorous degree from day one and sat in lectures with some of the brightest minds of the world, literally a ‘small fish in a big pond’. My schedule was intense as I juggled daily lectures, labs and tutorials during the day and spent most nights in libraries until the late hours with my new best friend, coffee. Around Oxford I joined many societies – the Bhangra dance team was my favourite – and connected with amazing and inspirational people, including Malala Yousafzai.
