Tag: graduate

Hayley’s first class response to cancer diagnosis

MSc is the next challenge for inspirational student 

A student who was diagnosed with a rare cancer at a key point in her studies has successfully graduated from Edinburgh Napier University with a first class honours degree.

Hayley Kane recovered from the devastating news, and two operations, to complete her BSc (Hons) in Animal and Conservation Biology – even though at times she had to leave lectures to change her dressing following radiotherapy treatment.

Now the brave 24-year-old is set to continue her studies in September with an MSc in Statistical Ecology at St Andrews University. 

Hayley said: “I’m thrilled to have completed my degree and I hope my experience will serve as inspiration to other students who may be struggling due to external factors.  It is possible to overcome hardships and achieve your goals as long as you are willing to work for it.”

Hayley, of Fairmilehead, Edinburgh, was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma shortly before her third year assessments started – although she only learned about it after it had been removed. The rare form of cancer develops in cells around joints and tendons, often near the knee, and is most commonly associated with young adults.

Hayley had had issues with her knee for almost a decade, which worsened to a point where she was in constant pain and struggling to walk without crutches.  

An x-ray picked up what was initially presumed to be a benign tumour but after an op to remove it she was told it had been synovial sarcoma, and was likely to have become cancerous fairly recently.

Hayley said: “I opted not to have chemotherapy due to the potential long-term effects on my health, and went on to have 12 weeks of radiotherapy to my knee.  I underwent treatment throughout my third year assessments and over Christmas, with it ending shortly before the next trimester began.

“There were times when I had to excuse myself from lectures to change the dressings on my knee due to the excessive fluid leaking from the burns on my leg, but thankfully my friends were always happy to help fill me in on anything I had missed.

“Since my treatment finished I have thankfully remained cancer-free and look forward to resuming my studies at St Andrews.”

Dr Gavin Ballantyne, lecturer in Edinburgh Napier’s School of Applied Sciences, said: “Hayley has done brilliantly at Edinburgh Napier.

“Not only has she overcome serious health issues, but she’s also remained engaged, motivated and has produced an excellent final year project. We’re so pleased to see her graduate with a first-class degree and now go on to start an MSc at St Andrews.”

Natalie secures business degree despite mystery blackouts

New graduate praises University support measures

A STUDENT who almost dropped out of university after a series of mystery collapses is today celebrating completing her Edinburgh Napier degree at the same time as her classmates.

Natalie Dunsmore’s health woes emerged when as a second year she blacked out while on a sunshine break in Cyprus.

Many more episodes followed, including periods when Natalie collapsed every two or three days, once in front of a class at a lecture.

On another occasion she blacked out on the day of an exam, but still managed to complete the paper after being checked over by an ambulance crew.

However, her ill health was taking its toll, leaving her wondering if she would ever complete her studies.

“I decided close to the end of third year that I was going to give up university,” said Natalie, 21, of Harthill, Lanarkshire.  “I felt as if I was a hassle to everyone, and decided it was easier to drop out.

“But the University pushed me on and told me I could do it. They had already put in place a buddy system for me, meaning someone from my year was with me at all times on campus.

They also gave me a medical pass with first aid instructions on a lanyard, and allowed me to use a separate exam room and have extra time if needed.

“The University couldn’t have done any more for me to ensure I felt safe on campus.

“Despite missing most of fourth year due to being unwell in hospital, I finally got diagnosed with epilepsy, and I managed to hand in my dissertation and complete fourth year normally alongside my peers.  Looking back I’m so glad I stuck with it and pushed on.”

Natalie is now the proud holder of a BA (Hons) in Business Management.

She said: “Whatever problems people come across, there are always routes you can take to what you want to achieve. I had many low times when I thought dropping out was my best option, but I have overcome this and now have a degree after suffering terribly for three years of my course.”

Natalie now hopes to go on and do a Professional Graduate Diploma in Business Education with a view to taking up a teaching role.

Dr Mike Sanderson, lecturer in Human Resource Management and Disability Contact for the Business School, said: “The staff at Edinburgh Napier University have been extremely impressed by Natalie’s determination to complete her studies in the face of many health difficulties.

“As an institution we are highly student-focused, and will leave no stone unturned to explore ways in which we can support students through their studies.

“We are delighted for Natalie and congratulate her on this great achievement.  She is an inspiration to us all.”

Bereaved through violence but grieving Hazina gets her BA

“The ups reminded me where I wanted to go, and the downs pushed me to get there”

A STUDENT who lost five family members to violent crime in two months has told how she battled through grief to graduate with distinction from Edinburgh Napier University.

Hazina Alladin’s world was turned upside down by the deaths of two cousins, a cousin-in-law, an uncle and his wife in two separate home invasion robberies in her home country of Trinidad.

She admits the murders brought her “to her knees”, and led to her ignoring her mental and emotional health as she threw herself into the demands of both her day job and study programme.

Hazina credits the university’s Wellbeing & Support online pages with helping her eventually come to terms with her grief, anger and disbelief, as well as her Christian faith, confidence-boosting voluntary work and creative hobbies like photography and dancing.

Now she has learned that she has graduated from Edinburgh Napier with a BA with Distinction in Business & Enterprise.  Despite the family tragedies in her Caribbean homeland, she achieved merits and distinctions for all of her assignments on the online course.

Hazina, 28, who was also elected Online Programme Representative at the university, said: “Coping with my losses while working full-time, volunteering, studying for a degree and being away from my family was indeed challenging. However, I realised I needed both the peaks and the valleys to keep moving forward. The ups reminded me where I wanted to go, and the downs pushed me to get there.”

The first incident happened in Penal, south Trinidad, in August last year.  While working on a course assignment, Hazina learned in a call from her mother that two cousins and one of their wives had been found dead in their house with gunshot wounds and cuts to their throats.

She said: “I fell to my knees and cried uncontrollably.  I screamed the word ‘no’ for hours until my voice was gone. It was absolutely heartbreaking.”

Two months later, a retired uncle and his wife were killed in a violent home invasion in Central Trinidad. A 24-year-old suspect was later arrested after being spotted driving their stolen vehicle.

In the weeks that followed, Hazina experienced outbursts of grief but also began following processes that helped her create space for herself.

She said: “I was afraid that these tragic events would affect my ability to continue learning.

“Grief made everything feel like an extra effort, whether it was making friends or submitting work, but there were plenty of resources available at Edinburgh Napier to help me work though my feelings.  The Wellbeing & Support site was extremely helpful. I explored books on the Shelf Help section and strategies to reduce pain and boost my ability to cope.

“I also enjoyed networking with Edinburgh Napier’s global community of students, and the online programme rep role was a big help in this. It involved keeping abreast of student issues on our degree programme, representing students’ interests and addressing issues that impacted on the quality of their experience at the university.”

Now Hazina – who earlier studied at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School – is putting what she learned from her one-year online course at Edinburgh Napier to good use in her current job with a property development firm in New York City, where she has lived for four years.

She said: “I was offered a position as Administrator just two months after enrolling at Napier. I am responsible for coordinating office activities in compliance to company policy and procedure. Now, I can better relate to the company after learning about business plans and how to calculate the return on the investments a company makes and how different business models work.

“I’ve found that when you are able to apply the material and talk about how it relates to life today, you’re much more able to remember it. It’s almost like your brain presses an ‘on’ switch and you start to absorb the material better because you are at least partially invested in it.”

Dr Kingsley Omeihe, Lecturer in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Edinburgh Napier’s Business School, said: “Hazina is an outstanding, dedicated and talented student.

“Achieving a distinction is an impressive feat, and the fact that she has been able to do as well as she has, given the circumstances, says a lot about her. Her personal qualities are as impressive as her intellectual accomplishments.”