Two University of Chester students have been recognised at the National Association of Student Employment Services (NASES) Student Employee of the Year Awards.
Final year nursing student Lauren Cooper, 31, from Shrewsbury, has won the Student of the Year National Award for the Above and Beyond category, having previously won the North West regional award.
Final year events management student Elizabeth Pittaway, 24, from Chester, is also a North West regional winner, having won the Step up to Leadership category.
The awards recognise and promote the outstanding contributions and achievements of students, who effectively combine part-time work alongside their study commitments.
Lauren was nominated by Amanda Woodard, manager of the gynaecology outpatient department at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
She was selected by NASES as the North West regional winner in the Above and Beyond category for her work as a healthcare assistant/student nurse with the hospital.
Amanda said: “Lauren is a kind and caring individual who always puts the patients’ needs before her own.
“Lauren strongly supports the team she works within but also works exceptionally well autonomously.
“Lauren continuously goes above and beyond to help patients and supported the team throughout the winter crisis we experienced in March 2018 when team members were unable to get to work due to snowfall.
“Lauren’s dedication to the job and eagerness to learn has definitely enabled me and my team to continue to provide the highest possible quality of service to all of our outpatients.
“I believe that Lauren is an exceptional person who fully deserves the Student Employee of the Year award.”
On her nomination and success at the NASES awards, Lauren said: “I was overwhelmed at winning the regional award in the Above and Beyond category, so when I found out that I had won the national award it came as a huge surprise!
“It is a wonderful feeling to receive recognition after putting in a lot of hard work alongside my studies for my Nursing degree.
“I would like to thank the team at NASES who made the evening such a memorable occasion.”
Elizabeth Pittaway was nominated by Adam Crane, employer engagement co-ordinator within Student Futures - Careers and Employability at the University of Chester.
She was chosen as the North West regional winner in the Step up to Leadership category for her work as an events and promotions assistant and with the university’s first TEDx event, within careers and employability, where she was employed through UniJob.
UniJob is a scheme run by the university to help students find paid employment on campus.
The scheme encourages departments that have recruited student staff members to nominate those who have been outstanding for the SEOTY Awards.
However, for the first time this year, the university received nominations from external employers for the SEOTY awards, rather than from its internal student recruitment bank.
Adam Crane said: “Elizabeth began her role with an incredible amount of enthusiasm and demonstrated creative and collaborative working practices at an early stage.
“Elizabeth’s exceptionally high standard of work led to her taking full lead on the TEDx Chester event as a student events manager.
“This level of responsibility for a major university event is a testament to Elizabeth’s quality of work and willingness to step up.”
On her success and experience, Elizabeth said: “This experience has given me the confidence to go the extra mile and perform well in my next role.
“Being a regional winner will definitely benefit me in the future and will look great on my CV.”
As regional winners, both students were invited to attend a Winners’ Workshop and the SEOTY Awards evening dinner at the Jury’s Inn in Cardiff.
During the evening, Lauren was awarded the Student Employee of the Year National Award in the Above and Beyond category.
Acting director of careers and employability and employment opportunities team leader, Sally Harding, said: “Both Lauren and Elizabeth should be extremely proud of their amazing achievements.
“For both ladies to be recognised as North West regional winners is an absolutely fantastic achievement in itself.
“Putting this into context, this group saw off competition from over 600 student nominations from around the country, which is no small feat!
“For Lauren to go on and win a national award is an incredible achievement and is a real testament to the hard work, commitment and dedication demonstrated by Lauren in her role of healthcare assistant/student nurse at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate both Lauren and Elizabeth and wish them the very best for their future.”
