1983-1987
BA French and German
2019-2021
MSc- Management (Entrepreneurship)
2012-2013
MA Studies in Poetry
1984-1987
BSc Geography
1998-2002
BA Modern European Languages
2001-2004
BSc Mathematics
1996-1999
BA English Language and Linguistics
2016-2021
PhD Archaeology
1985-1986
BA English Lit
2017-2021
BA English Literature and History
2004-2007
BA Software Engineering
1992-1993
MBA
1993-1997
BA English Literature/PGCE
1994-1997
Natural Sciences
2019-2022
BA Psychology
1992-1995
LLB
1976-1979
BA Hons English
2000-2003
Law LLB
2014-2017
1977-1980
1999-2003
BA Modern Languages (French, Spanish, Russian)
September 1995-July 1999
BA Politics
September 2020 - July 2023
BA Combined Honours in Social Science
1987-1990
B.A hons English Language and Literature
What are your favourite memories of your time at Trevelyan College?
I joined Trevs when it was still a women-only college. I specifically chose a women-only environment for safety, familiarity and same-gender collegiality. Three of most closest friends are Trevs women. My son and my daughter in law are Trevs alumni. I serve on the Trevs Advisory Council. For me Trevs is not about memories of 40 years ago, but still very much current and part of my life.
How did your time at Trevs shape your career journey or other experiences after graduation?
The Careers Advisory Service in those days directed women with northern accents into primary school teaching and public school educated men into investment banking. I rebelled against that and studied post-grad law becoming a solicitor. My languages degree enabled me to work as a lawyer in Brussels and specialise in pan-European particularly Nordic deals. Trevs shaped me as a European.
What have you done since graduation?
I've spent 35 years in financial services and business law, specifically majoring in private equity and asset management. I founded the Private Equity Lawyers Forum promoting professional standards, networking and know-sharing for lawyers in the sector, have served on various industry committees shaping policy and regulation and use my legal training for pro bono governance assistance for charities.
What are you doing now?
I'm General Counsel Europe for an asset manager. I serve on the board of directors of NESsT, a not for profit providing finance and management support to social enterprises in Eastern Europe and Latin America, mentor students through the Social Mobility Foundation and am on the Advisory Councils of Trevs and the Diversity Project, as well as still chairing the Private Equity Lawyers Forum. I like to visit Trevs at least once a year to provide support and insights to the current students.
What advice would you give yourself as a new student, knowing what you know now?
Be open-minded and receptive, do not fall out with people but move on if your integrity is compromised. Give back. Be generous with your time and in your judgment of others.
Describe Trevs in three words
Happy, horizon-extending, lifelong
Trevelyan College shaped my time at Durham. Living there, I met my best friends and hosted potluck dinners where everyone shared meals from their cultural backgrounds. These experiences inspired me to start my business, Hey! Food is Ready. I also loved being part of the Cheerleading Society, performing with pom-poms and building lifelong friendships that made my college experience unforgettable.
Living at Trevelyan College exposed me to a vibrant, multicultural community and inspired my love for food and culture. Missing authentic meals from home, I discovered talented cooks from different backgrounds celebrating their cuisines behind closed doors. This inspired me to start Hey! Food is Ready at Durham, creating a marketplace where diverse chefs share their food, stories, and culture while earning meaningful income, shaping my career and entrepreneurial journey.
Since graduation, I have built Hey! Food is Ready, an online marketplace connecting chefs from diverse cultural backgrounds with companies seeking authentic, culturally rich food for their events. To date, we have worked with over 125 chefs, catered 400+ events, and collaborated with clients including Google, Barclays, and NatWest. Recognised with the Young Innovator Award and shortlisted for Innovate UK’s Inclusive Innovation Award, I empower chefs to share their cuisine, culture, and stories while earning meaningful income.
I am currently running Hey! Food is Ready, an online marketplace connecting chefs from diverse cultural backgrounds with corporate and private events for catering. I manage a growing network of over 125 chefs, curate bespoke menus, and oversee operations, marketing, and partnerships. The business empowers chefs to share their cuisine, culture, and stories while earning meaningful income, while enabling companies to offer authentic, culturally rich food experiences.
Trust your passions, embrace new cultures, and build connections, those friendships and experiences will inspire your future and shape opportunities you never imagined.
Diverse, inspiring, family
I loved all the moments we came together: the post-grad trips to Wallington, formal dinners meeting new friends, and playing clarinet in the Trevs band.
Trevs gave me a place to be myself. To connect with like-minded people and go after everything I was excited about (music, writing, seeing more of the world).
I lived in Sicily for a while, teaching English in a shelter. I moved to London, hosted poetry nights in aid of different charities and wrote pieces for national newspapers before moving into digital marketing for the last 12 years.
Most recently, I took a career break (solo travelling round SE Asia) and came back and started my Marketing Consultancy 3 years ago.
I’ve been a UN Women UK Delegate twice, regularly sit on the judging panel for various Marketing awards, still write poetry and have even played my clarinet at a friend’s wedding. I still volunteer - serving food at my local food kitchen and as a charity trustee aimed at encouraging teenagers to think about their careers.
Say yes to the opportunities. Try new things, meet new people (they may end up being life long friends!), and enjoy the chance you get to study your favourite subject in depth.
Warm, creative, supportive
Having tea and a chat with friends on my landing. Hanging out in the bar with friends from several Colleges. The Trevs Summer Ball was always a great night. The Chaplain (The Rt Rev'd Stephen Pickard) played a major role in the development of my Christian faith and understanding, particularly through our regular meetings as I prepared for confirmation, and the assignments he set.
My time at Trevs taught me a lot about how to speak up about issues affecting those who were finding life tough, eg bringing the health needs of someone on my landing to the attention of College staff in a way that meant they got some much-needed support and were able to finish their course. This was the first time I had needed to work out who needed to know to ensure a positive outcome in a very delicate situation and the lessons learned have been important in my career in HR, my time as a full-time Mum, and my ministry within the Church of England.
1988-1995: I worked in HR for Eagle Star Insurance, starting as a Graduate Trainee and moving on to manage a small team overseeing HR for one of the Operating Companies. 1995-2009: Full-time Mum to two children, and also providing care to the children of friends and family, School Governor (Deputy Chair, with HR responsibilities), Lay Minister in the Church of England, set up and ran a church toddler group
I am retiring from my final post at the end of June 2026 and will then take a 6-month break before working out what the next season holds.
Make the most of your time in such a beautiful place, seizing opportunities to try new things and to make lifelong friends.
Thriving, community, daring
The Informal Balls were always great but we most looked forward to the Formal dinners, with Boat Races, rules of the game and so forth. They were brilliant.
I became independent and able to react to all sorts of different situations, this has been so useful over and over again. Captaining the hockey team was also very helpful experience.
I have worked most of my career in Finance, and moved to Switzerland some time ago. My career highlight would be my current role as Head of FX at a Private Bank in Geneva.
I am currently the Head of the FX Desk for Julius Baer Private Bank in Geneva. This has not been connected to my Degree subject, but much more to do with the other skills I developed at Trevs.
Socialise. It's hard, but it's worth it, you will never again have these social opportunities.
Family, Hexagon, Beer
Learning an incredible amount about how to organize myself and how to engage with a diversity of opinions during my year as JCR Chair.Getting to spend real quality time on runs up Collingwood steps or along the river past Maiden Castle with some of my best friends. We all met at Trevs and still holiday together with our families 25 years later.
The way life at Trevs normalized active and inclusive participation in the community in parallel to, rather than as an alternative to, the very high academic expectations of Durham taught me that elite performance is not fostered by elitest attitudes. This was probably my single most important learning from my time there and plays no small part in driving my approach to my career in higher education teaching.
Travelled a lot, learned German from scratch, established a family, taught at top-tier higher education institutions and scientific research institutes, published interdisciplinary linguistics research in international journals.
I teach English at the Friedrich-Alexander University and at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, both in Erlangen, Germany.
Prioritise becoming brilliant at managing your time but don't try to work everything out in advance - many of the best opportunities and most wonderful experiences are unexpected.
Close-knit, supportive, friendship
I chose Trevs because of all the different music groups that the college offered, and I took part in the college orchestra, choir and musical, as well as setting up a clarinet choir with a few others in my final year. I met my husband through Trevs orchestra, and we were in different year groups so might not have met otherwise!
Coming from a state comprehensive school, many of my classmates weren’t aiming for university. I was very shy and quiet when I arrived at Trevs but gained a great deal of confidence through all the opportunities on offer. My degree in Linguistics led to me pursuing postgrad study in Applied Linguistics, and my links with the university helped me secure my first role teaching English to Japanese students at a Japanese university based in Durham.
I studied an MA in Applied Linguistics (Lexicography) with the intention of working in the field of dictionary publishing. Whilst gaining teaching experience to equip me to work publishing learner dictionaries, I realised that I really enjoyed teaching and the broader field of language education and so pursued a career in this area. I worked in the FE sector teaching English to refugees and asylum seekers, then worked at Durham University Language Centre as an EAP (English for Academic Purposes) teacher.
I’m currently a Professor at Durham University, where I have a range of responsibilities. I am Director of the Combined Honours in Social Sciences degree programme and academic lead for the Faculty of Social Sciences Interdisciplinary Hub. I am also the university’s Academic Mentoring Coordinator, where I work with all our departments to ensure that our mentoring policy is supporting staff in their career ambitions. These roles bring together my disciplinary interests with my work on belonging and community identity.
Be yourself, be authentic, your contribution is as worthwhile as anyone else’s.
Music, hexagons, daffodils
Some of my favourite memories involve friends and the brilliant social atmosphere at Trevs, especially long evenings in the Mowlam Room. Other highlights include weekly treks to the Union Society for wine and debates, post-formal discos in the bar DJ’d by the incomparable Tim Fowler, early morning HIIT sessions before sweaty but sociable breakfasts, and the impressive diversity of beer available during Trevs Day festivities.
Receiving Trevelyan Trust Travel Bursaries allowed me to expand my research through fieldwork at Brú na Bóinne and Orkney. These experiences were invaluable to my PhD and helped shape my future career in heritage, as well as my passion for engaging people with our prehistoric past. I remain incredibly grateful for these opportunities. Beyond academia, the friendships I made at Trevs remain an important part of my life, and we still regularly share adventures together.
I have been working at the intersection of research, heritage and public engagement, leading evaluation and cultural heritage projects for Durham University, Historic England and the University of Oxford, where I have worked for the past five years. Career highlights include: publishing my research in journals and edited volumes, co-curating an exhibition at Durham’s Oriental Museum, creating a summer placement opportunity for Leicester MA students, and displaying an Iron Age hoard at the Oxfordshire Museum.
I am the Evaluation Officer for the University of Oxford’s Gardens, Libraries and Museums (GLAM), leading the evaluation of exhibitions, events and public engagement projects across the University’s six cultural departments. My work combines data, storytelling and audience research to understand how people experience museums and collections. Alongside delivering training, mentoring students, and measuring the impact of the University’s research and engagement activities on visitors, I get to attend private views of our exhibitions.
Make the most of all that college has to offer from the funding opportunities to the social activities.
Inclusive, Hexy, Fun
Although when I arrived I was put off by the idea of academic robes at dinner, those 2 nights a week of formal dinners were a magical tradition. I also loved performing at Trevs Ball with the Stud-Ents Review (our song “Where Do You Go To My Trevs Girl” was a full campus hit!). And I adored the Trevs library.
I was tremendously involved in theatre throughout my time in Durham, participating in several dramsocs and review troops, and my community at Trevs always supported me and came out in full to see my performances all over Durham. This support launched my career in the theatre — from drama school after uni to a 35-year career choreographing sword fights for stage and screen.
I went on to Webber Douglas for drama school (now part of Central School of Speech & Drama), and have worked ever since in the entertainment industry, first as an actor but also and most enduringly as a fight director and sword master for both theatre and film. I have worked for decades in Hollywood, but also at Shakespeare festivals in Europe and teaching at drama schools around the world.
I teach at several drama schools in Vienna and in Hollywood, as well as continuing to choreograph and direct fights for film and theatre. I am also releasing a book later this year — They Fight: Stage and Screen Combat for Actors.
Treasure every moment, and grab every opportunity! Join every club that even mildly interests you!
Home cobbles classic
Rollerskating with my friends at Trevs Summer Ball 2018! I was also beyond honoured when I received colours for my graduation cap in recognition of getting the highest exam grades in second year.
I made friends for life at Trevs who I still see regularly to this day. They shaped my career by widening my perspective and allowing me to get to know people from all walks of life. This is very important in journalism as a good reporter is one who can look beyond their own views and consider all perspectives.
I became a reporter for the Bath Chronicle and Bristol Post. As part of my job, I've reported on the ground at Glastonbury Festival (twice!) and the 2024 General Election count. As a reporter, I cover everything from court cases to restaurant reviews. I also review hotels sometimes for The Mirror.
I'm a full-time reporter for the Bath Chronicle and Bristol Post. I hope to get promoted to Senior Reporter soon.
Enjoy it. It goes so quickly!
Welcoming, quirky, creative
It's not really one particular thing, but all the mix of events/societies and activities that go on at Trevs. Certainly from speaking to other friends (and my wife) their university experiences were so different from Durham. Though I would say, the 3 weeks after exams with Trevs day, the summer ball, Trevs unplugged etc were always great.
As a student trying to get a job (particularly after the financial crash in 08), having played a big part in Trevs during my time, it really helped to provide me with a great and well rounded CV. Also, being involved in so many sports and societies gave me great confidence, people skills and from running Trevs bar, brilliant experience going into the working world.
Well, after sticking around for two years running Trevs (and then Mary's) bar, I got onto the Co-op grad scheme. That was great, but I had the acting itch (I did lots of Trevs musicals). So I packed it all in, went to acting school and was a jobbing actor. I had great fun on many different jobs (nothing big), I did firearms training, motion capture for a video game, performed at the Edinburgh Fringe and was a Maze Master at the Crystal Maze Live Experience.
Well, whilst acting was amazing, lockdown put a stop to the industry and I needed to pay the mortgage so I got lured back into the corporate world and a steady salary. I joined a start-up marketing agency in hospitality and was their Head of Insights. I've since moved into another start-up, this time in tech hospitality as Insights and Strategy Manager and we're pioneering AI in the industry
Enjoy your time at Trevs. Join clubs, play sports, go to events. My time at Durham was some of the best years of my life
Community fulfilling fun
I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Trevelyan College while studying for my full-time MBA at Durham University in 1992–93. I particularly remember the warm welcome from the Middle Common Room and from the Principal at the time, Deborah Lavin.
As an Australian studying overseas, Trevelyan gave me an early appreciation of the importance of international relationships, perspectives, and networks. Unfortunately, over time I lost contact with many of the people I studied with, but I remain very grateful for the experience and the opportunities that came from studying at Durham.
The major part of my career following graduation was in public service and politics in Australia. I served as a representative in the Parliament of South Australia in a variety of roles, culminating in the enormous privilege of serving as the 46th Premier of South Australia from 2018 to 2022.
I am currently living in New York and serving as President of the American Australian Association, a private-sector, non-government, not-for-profit organisation established in 1948 to strengthen ties between the United States and Australia through education, culture, business, innovation, and strategic engagement.
My advice would be simple: get involved in everything you can.
Your studies are obviously very important, but so too are the friendships, relationships, networks, and experiences that you build while at university. Those connections and experiences often stay with you for life and can shape opportunities in ways you never expect.
Welcoming. Social. Memorable.
I established Trevs college choir in my first year and I believe it is still going strong. We started the tradition of holding a service in the Cathedral - a magical musical event that brings back special memories for me.
My time at Trevs gave me the confidence to teach and the desire to share my enthusiasm for language and nature with others. It remains the most formative place in my life.
I taught English for six years at Framwellgate School and then at a Sixth Form College in Cambridge, while examining A Level English for OCR. I married fellow Trevs graduate Colin Wilson and we were pastoral tutors for the college. We have two teenage children - one named after a college friend and one named after one of our tutees.
I now work as a nature writer and editor, and a Guardian country diarist, writing in the longest running newspaper column in the world. I published my memoir, Land Beneath the Waves, in 2025 with Hachette.
Make the most of your time in such a beautiful city and wonderful college. Enjoy your proximity to the Botanic Garden!
Home Happy Friendly
I liked the cozy feel, the tutorial culture we had then, and things like the Arts Committee and College Musicals. I also met my now wife.
I popped out of Durham with a strong grounding in Applied Physics and Geology and a passion for both. It was a long time ago; I was lucky to secure a funded doctorate at Oxford in paleomagnetism and volcanology.
From Oxford I joined the Civil Service as a Fast Streamer. I did a range of jobs around energy transport and environment. These included leading four Bills (including the Climate Change Act and two Energy Bills), setting up the London Low Emission Zone and leading the Team setting up the infrastructure planning commission and the first set of National Policy Statements for Nationally Significant infrastructure. After 15 years in the Civil Service I made the move to the private sector, initially at INEOS working on Oil and Gas and then in power networks, at Berkshire Hathaway Energy and now SSE Distribution where I am Commercial Director.
I am currently Commercial Director at SSE Distribution, running the power networks in the North of Scotland and South of England.
Today’s world is very different to the late 90s. University is a big investment, so it is important you make the most out of it. I encourage my new starters to have a career plan - have a target for what you are aiming for and how you can make the most of what you are doing now to get there. But that should include fun, work is important, but it is also important to have interests outside work.
Cozy, supportive, ambitious.
Though my university experience was mostly swallowed up by COVID, I did get to do a play with Sixth Side Theatre, which was incredible. I was also a part of the Volleyball club, Art Club, and spent a significant amount of time in social committee, and was lucky enough to get elected as Social Chair in my final year! Difficult as it was to organise events coming out of lockdown, we still managed to have a lot of fun.
Trevs directly impacted my career trajectory, more so than my actual degree did. My experience as Social Chair and being part of social committee landed me a job in the events industry upon graduating. Outside of my career, the people I met at Trevs are still my closest friends to this day.
My first job after graduating was as an events manager for a live music agency in London. I was eventually promoted to marketing manager and was there for 2 and a half years before I moved to America for a spell. There I worked at the oldest continually running inn in America as the Director of Sales for all their event spaces and hotel properties. I also started a TikTok channel - it's a bit of fun and not doing too bad!
Recently I moved back to London and am now working for ATG Entertainment as Business Development Manager, overseeing their Gift Vouchers program across the UK. It's a new challenge that remains in an industry I adore: live entertainment! Plus, theatre always held a special place in my heart, so this feels like coming home.
I suppose I would warn myself about COVID, but that's an easy answer. I think I would tell younger me to not be afraid to do things that might make her nervous. The world wasn't going to end because she put her feelings out there, it was going to end because of global pandemic that had nothing to do with her. Ironically.
Quirky, small, fun
Spending time in a supportive college atmosphere which was conducive to both academic studies and forging life long friendships. Evenings spent in the college bar or making our way into town to participate in clubs and social events through four seasons of weather are fond memories.
Being a Trevor alumni gave me confidence. As a student who would have been considered from a lower socio-economic background today, the confidence of knowing I had the same, if not stronger desire, to succeed was important in helping me get into the career ladder. Insights from my college tutor into careers helped open my eyes to what the world had to offer beyond Trevs front door.
I have had an amazing career to date (and hopefully more to come!). Graduating in law, I moved into the accountancy profession to study for my ACA. After deliberately joining a small practice and going through two mergers I landed at the firm (BDO) which has been the foundation of my career. Being supported by BDO to forge my own path through audit and into a specialism in oil and gas has been an amazing experience, taken me to places I would never have dreamed of going and meeting incredibly talented people.
As the foundation of my career by BDO life is currently my role as Executive Board member responsible for our firm-wide People, Culture and Purpose agenda. This means I’m responsible for the day-to-day experience of over 8,000 people and partners and ensuring what we build and deliver for the firm supports our strategy now and in to the future.
Careers are not straight highways. They are country lanes which will lead you all over the place. Identify what gets you out of bed in the morning and base your career on that passion.
Supportive. Caring. Academic
The friendships, living in college, the formal dinners, just being part of something completely out of the world where I had come from. It was a buzzing vibrant time and the three years I spent at Trevs still stands out as the best time! It was a period which gave me new freedoms and excitement and which definitely set my ambitions high for the rest of my life.
My time at Trevs made me much more confident and capable of achieving goals in my life. Before Trevs, I completely lacked the confidence to push myself forward. I would sit at the back - but after life in Durham I pushed to the front in everything I did. The Trevs experience also gave me a network of lifetime friends who are still there today.
Loads! I’m a journalist and have worked in many spheres. I worked abroad in the Gulf before joining the BBC as a journalist where I enjoyed a long career across different roles in the newsroom. I have always carried the Trevs badge of honour with me and I have found it has opened doors in all kinds of areas I would not expect. The Trevs community stretches worldwide!
I’m now a Chair of a UK Research Ethics Committee which provides safeguards for people who take part in all-important clinical trials. Plus I’m on the committee of the BBC pensioners association. And a steward at beautiful Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff which also reminds me of volunteering at the stunning Durham Cathedral!
Be brave and always try new exciting things - you don’t know when your opportunities will run out !
Fun-filled, friendly, fantastic !
We formed a college band called U.R.M. - the Utopian Rhythm Movement. We played covers at events like the Summer Ball, outdoors in the middle section of the building (the quad?). Arms round shoulders, everyone singing Don't Look Back in Anger. A pure natural high
Trevs provided a safe place to experience so many of Life's firsts - living away from home, making friends and girlfriends, managing money, being in charge of my study, my health, my entertainment. It probably gave me a confidence to go off into the world, and I have lived for a time in the USA, and Japan, and Singapore.
Honestly, my degree has had minimal effect on my career. I moved to Singapore in 2005 and by good fortune fell into a media job as a radio DJ and I've pretty much done that job for 20 years. Interviewed many stars over the years like Noel Gallagher, Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry....
I am a radio DJ, and the Music Director for a radio station in Singapore called ONE FM 91.3. I have also published one fiction novel so far titled "The Short Life of Raven Monroe".
I have had an interesting life and I don't think I would do anything different for my university years. They were really full of fun. And Trevs was the homebase for all of it.
Friendly; warm; colourful
I have so many wonderful memories of my time at Trevs, from the college musical to Summer Balls to Trevs days to bar nights to exec meetings to frepping to Christmas formal pantos and 12 days of Christmas singing. But mostly my favourite memories are from all the times my friends and I were sat in the bar, on a landing, in the quad or in various parts of college just chatting, complaining about essays, putting the world to rights or just chilling (often with a drink from the bar!).
A key moment for me was organising the residential post-offer visit days. I loved leading the team of Reps and organising, and it made me realise I was good at co-ordinating a team and therefore started to look into working in media production, and it gave me the tools to begin! Trevs also gave me confidence to try new things, be heard and to be myself - I always felt supported by the lovely community feel of the college. It also gave me best friends - and a community - for life. My husband is constantly surprised at how many people I bump into from Trevs, and how well we all still get on... and how much we all love Trevs still!
Straight after graduation I undertook a MSc at Imperial College London in Science Media Production. I have since stayed in London, working first as a freelance radio researcher and assistant producer, and now as a freelance radio and podcast producer and science reporter. I have worked for a range of outlets on science and factual programmes, including BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 2, BBC World Service, The Guardian, Audible and The Economist. I have recorded around the world: studying the polar sky in Svalbard, searching tropical seas for bioluminescent organisms in the Caribbean, tracking Burmese pythons through the Everglades in Florida, and delving deep into underground seed banks in Sussex. My work investigating coastal erosion in Puerto Rico won the 2024 Gold Ricardo Ortega Memorial Prize from the United Nations Correspondents Association. Most recently I produced Royal Botanic Gardens Kew podcast 'Unearthed', presented by Cate Blanchett and featuring special guest His Majesty the King.
I am still a freelance radio and podcast producer with a specialism in science. I am currently working on The Economist's weekly science podcast 'Babbage' and a documentary for The BBC World Service, as well as some other projects in development.
Now is the only time in your life where your job is to learn, and that is a privilege! Work hard but throw yourself into student life as well, there are so many clubs and societies to explore. And remember to always put a key and a scale on your maps.
home; community; hexagons
So many memories and lifelong friends! Badminton society was my favourite, but I was also dragged to cultural events. A particular memory is a keep fit session run by a local lady and her pianist - all very silly, dancing around, pretending to be trees, but I could hardly walk for days afterwards (tricky as I was on H3). Others include water fights on the landing and formal dinners (and the annual formal breakfast).
The supportive friendship group and the overall environment allowed me to experiment and grow, and gave me the confidence to try new and different things. I think I still have that mindset. I was the first in my family to go to university and the exposure to other people’s experiences and expectations really widened my horizons both in terms of personal development and especially when looking at career options.
I qualified as a chartered accountant, became partner in a large firm, was the first female Head of Audit in any large UK firm, then Global Head of Assurance for the worldwide network. I served 5 years on the IAASB, setting standards for auditors worldwide.Awards include 2022 International Accounting Personality of the Year; 2019 British Accountancy Outstanding Contribution to Accounting and Finance; 2015 Global Accountancy Power 50 of individuals that excel and influence the profession.
I am semi-retired, currently acting as a strategic advisor for a fast-growing software company in the accounting sector. Away from work, I have taken up badminton again and do cover yoga teaching (I qualified 4 years ago). Enjoying travel - just back from my 2nd Interrail trip, something I never managed as a student! And coordinating the next lunch meet-up with the 'old' Trevs ladies (it was not mixed when we were there!)
Be open minded and embrace the opportunities that are at your fingertips. Have a go at anything, you might surprise yourself. And treasure the people.
Friendly, fun, hexagonal
Being able to do all the fun sports and other activities which were on offer. Some great formals with fun themes too! The shape of the college was truly unique and I was lucky to be able to see the Cathedral from my room!
The freedom to be alone, away from family, but within a supportive network helped me become independent and self-confident. My languages degree meant I landed in a job for which I had no qualifications, but they wanted me purely for my language skills and had faith that I would be able to learn on the job.
Worked as a languages teacher in Germany for 2yrs, returned to UK, got married to my Durham sweetheart, had 3 children, set up my own photography business. Completed fun sports adventures including LeJog (cycling) and Ironman Triathlons, plus represented GB at the triathlon age group world championships.
I am currently training to become a secondary school languages teacher, whilst also working part-time supporting EAL students. I have also set up a free dance group, to encourage people in the community to move and have fun.
If you are the more shy type like me, go out and have more fun! I still spent too much time trying to please my parents! Go out and try lots of things at the beginning, then choose the ones you enjoy the most. Also, it will always work out well in the end! :)
Fun, Welcoming, Supportive
While I had fun in the Dramatic Society, and rowing, my abiding memory is of a group of first years playing laser tag around the almost purpose built complex that Trevs uniquely presents! Thinking back to that group it emphasised the mix and the fun we all had, making lifelong connections.
Trevs and Durham as a whole provided not only a fantastic educational grounding about what to think, but gave me the room to explore my boundaries and grow in terms of how to think. This included adjusting my career expectations and my view of the world, helped by the environment as well as great mentors and supporters. This is not universal at universities, as I’ve discovered as an employer in later life.
I became a front office investment banker, but was always an Army Reservist cavalry officer and chose to go full time after 9/11. I commanded the Challenger 2 tank and served operationally in the Balkans, Iraq, and Afghanistan as well as Whitehall and Germany. I ended up in private sector intelligence as an analyst, and founded my own company, Sibylline, in 2010 to focus on intelligence and geopolitics; we have gone on to win multiple awards. I wrote an Amazon bestselling (not hard) management science book in 2015 which was the first major work in my field, and later was President of the analysts’s Association, AIRIP. I’ve routinely been featured in international media, including a profile in the Telegraph, and am both a columnist and commentator for global print and broadcast media.
I continue to own and lead Sibylline, which won the Queen’s Award in 2020 and King’s Award in 2025, making us one of only 37 companies to win our category back to back out of over 60,000 winners since the awards were started. I now lead a global team of several hundred people with operations in 12 countries, focused on predicting how the world will develop and the opportunities and threats inherent in that. Both myself and my brilliant colleagues are routinely profiled in international media for our expertise in defence, intelligence, and conflict. For me, this was all built on a foundation at Durham, and Trevs.
The education is only a tiny part of the puzzle. University is about so much more and the collegiate system offers a unique structure to help you learn and grow as a person.
Hexagons, edgy, vibrant
It has to be the college events that were held by us - It's always such a joy to see months of our effort coming to life!
Since my graduation, I've worked in multiple event companies from concert touring to trade shows (current role) - using the experience and skills from my days at Trevs in my day to day career life.
I've brewed coffee (lol), thrown three concerts in London, two record-breaking trade shows (and another two to come in September) in NEC Birmingham. I've also worked in several startups that align with my belief and thoughts both in London and Taiwan.
I'm a project coordinator/partnership manager at a Trade Show company - Nineteen Group.
Always give it a try - it will be worth your effort regardless of how 'unrelated' it might seem to your interest or career choice. All experience at university will shape your life journey significantly.
Hexy, Homely, and Heart-warming
My favourite memories of being at Trevs include studying in the college library, it feels just the same 39 years later! I fondly recall attending college summer balls with my then partner, who was at Aidans, now my husband of 36 years. Learning how to be college liaison officer 1989-1990, skills I have used many times since!
I became an English teacher after graduation and within 3 years was English coordinator of a middle school. All those administrative and communication skills I learnt at Trevs became central to all my career pathways. In my experience, career journeys don’t always move in a straight line! I left teaching in 1997, I had four children. As they were growing up I trained as a counsellor, did a top up degree in Integrative counselling and began to teach counselling. I then did a PhD in the Psychology department at the University of Birmingham with a focus on counselling and psychotherapy. I finished my career with 2 years as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford on a project exploring experiences of psychosis care in the UK for people from diverse backgrounds.
Highlights following my time at Trevs include marrying my partner, who was at Aidans, and having our four children together. I enjoyed coordinating a middle school English department in my twenties. I have also surprised myself! It dawned on me that I could still study later on and I have completing counselling and also psychotherapy training, a top up degree and a PhD in my 30’s and 40’s! At core, in all of these achievements, all the relational elements have been meaningful and central: my partner, our children, students I have taught, teachers I have learnt from, therapy clients who put their trust in me, research participants who bravely shared their experiences of mental health difficulties.
I retired a year ago. My last post was as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Psychiatry at Oxford. My husband and I then moved to York, from Worcestershire, revisited Durham where we met and have set up our home as the York hub for our children and partners. All of whom have studied or are studying at universities on undergraduate and postgraduate courses. My husband and I support and value them as the next generation of young people who share inclusive and environmental values and take steps on their own career pathways.
I would tell myself that it would be ok to make more room for uncertainty, that the subject I loved studying would remain central as a mirror on the world but not in the ways I might expect. I would also tell myself that in spite of my thoughts that other students had got life sorted, it isn’t true. No one is that sorted! I’m doing ok!
Home, Distinctive, Toasties
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