The Faculty of Life Sciences and Computing’s new employability initiative London Met FUTURE hosted its first competition last week.
Date: 17 February 2015
The Faculty of Life Sciences and Computing’s first Business and Employability Competition celebrates innovative ideas and research.
The competition, led by Student Enterprise Coordinator Nick Gardiner, was divided into two categories; business, and employability. Students were asked to submit a pitch, either for a business idea or in the form of an application for a specific job.
Applicants in both categories were encouraged to think about their Unique Selling Position (USP), either for their business idea or one that would set themselves apart from their competition in the job market.
Two students from each category were shortlisted to participate in a panel presentation as the final round of the competition last Wednesday 11 February.
The expert panel consisted of, Solomon Abrahams from Anatomie Physio, Simon Boot, Student Enterprise Manager at Accelerator, Adam Whitby, Business Relationship Manager at FDM and Fiona Tracey, Senior Careers Consultant at London Met’s Student Services.
Abrahams and Whitby gave brief talks on their experiences, offering finalists advice on job applications, the importance of transferable skills and how to identify them.
Whitby stressed the importance of enthusiasm and positive perspective: “You have to have that fire in the belly, go above and beyond”.
Abrahams' experience in various clinics gave him the insight and confidence necessary to set up his own business. “If students are engaged in many activities around their degree, that tells me that they are hungry,” he said.
The shortlisted students exhibited great skills in presentation and research. Finalists Kornel Pralat, a 2nd year BSc Sports Therapy student, and Ayush Sood, a 2nd year BSc Forensic Science student, both shortlisted in the employability category, spoke about their experiences running student societies and maintaining part-time jobs alongside their studies. Anita Kanyik, a 2nd year BSc Computing and Business IT student, shared her business idea on IT security, in particular the issue of identity theft.
Competition winner Lauren Shepherd, a 3rd year BSc Sports Therapy student, was awarded a £200 cash prize and business mentoring from London Met’s Accelerator for her presentation, a brilliant solution to the after-gym nutrition problem that many people are facing. Her pitch was interactive, exciting and showed impressive business and research skills.
Follow London Met FUTURE on Twitter and Facebook for more news and photos from the competition.
