Ambitious student Bidisha has been offered a place at research-intensive university and a founding member of the Russell Group, University of Southampton.

NewVIc Honours student Bidisha has received an offer to study Medicine at University of Southampton. Bidisha will be studying Medicine in September and is predicted to achieve grades of A*AA in the summer. Bidisha is the first child and the eldest in her family to be going to one of the top 15 universities in the UK. Southampton University is also ranked as the 8th research intensity university in the UK. She hopes to study medicine to pursue a career as a doctor since accompanying her grandmother to her doctor’s appointments when she was a little girl.

Bidisha is in her final year studying A Levels in Biology, Chemistry, Psychology and Italian. She arrived from Italy and joined the college on the Progress to Advanced programme where Bidisha excelled and progressed to her current A Levels. She’s a student councillor and also enrolled on the college’s Honours Programme for gifted and talented students which aim to support students with high academic potential from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, by inspiring and engaging them in challenging topics often only taught in private schools. Her aspirations to study medicine stems from her recognising vulnerable people need help and support.

With the encouragement and support of NewVIc, Bidisha has also been involved in many unique opportunities available to students. These included being a student councillor, The Honours Programme, The Brilliant Club and the Biology Olympiad.

Bidisha, Honours and A Level student, said:

“It’s a dream my parents worked hard and prayed for years. My parents are extremely proud of my accomplishments and have always encouraged me to work hard for this regardless of the circumstances I had to overcome. I am extremely grateful and fortunate to get a medicine offer from a Russell group university!

Throughout the whole medical application journey my peers were incredibly supportive. They encouraged me not to lose hope and keep myself positive. I am humbled by my achievements and I understand the value of hard work. My peers are definitely the best people around me as they are extremely supportive, encouraging and have a genuine positive energy towards me. I love the community here at NewVIc. Special thanks go to my Vice Principal, Magdalena Johnson and Karen Flanagan for all the guidance, encouragement and time dedicated to support me with my medical school application process. They are two incredible and wonderful mentors. They guided me at every step required in order to achieve my goals starting from UCAT preparation to the interview process. I couldn’t have done this without all the support from my teachers who believed in me and gave me confidence to go forward. I am so thankful for each and everyone of them.

I received great support from NewVIc throughout, especially from Carina and Magdalena which boosted my confidence. They reflected on my weak and strong points. I was also part of the Brilliant Club and Honours Programme. These extracurricular activities boosted my debating skills, non verbal skills and most importantly communication skills which are highly required in a medical field. The Brilliant Club was an amazing experience where I was able to complete assignments independently and have an undergraduate university experience. I was also part of the Biology Olympiad which enhanced my knowledge in Biology and looked into the subject in depth outside my specification.”

Magdalena Johnson, Vice Principal Student Achievement and Progress, added:

“Bidisha's educational journey has been absolutely remarkable. She joined the college in September 2019 and enrolled onto our intensive GCSE programme, and achieved 5 GCSEs, and progressed onto the A level programme a year later. She very quickly moved to the top of all her classes, and was identified as a gifted and talented student. Bidisha completed several work experience placements and shadowed doctors in both Italy and the UK. She was also invited to participate in the Brilliant Club when the college was allocated a project on exploration of mental health and she worked both independently and with a group of students to design an investigation and collect data. She is an academically outstanding student with a genuine passion for Medicine and she would thrive with the intellectual challenge of studying the subject at the university. We are very proud of her.”

Find out more about the NewVIc Honours Programme here https://www.newvic.ac.uk/honours-programme