Page 58 - Eclipse - Autumn/Winter 2024

The RVC Alumni Fund –

your support in action

Nadja Hale, Head of Fundraising

ach year the RVC Alumni
Fund provides an essential
lifeline to current students.
EThe fund supports a wide
range of projects each of which
seeks to support students, help them
gain essential skills or enhance their
experience at the university.
Two of the fund’s flagship projects
are the EMS+ Scheme and Summer
Studentships. The aim of EMS+ is to
provide bursaries which enable students to “The bursary has played a pivotal
undertake aspirational or career-informing Kristina Smirnova’s project, “Heart role in enabling me to partake
work experience opportunities. These may and muscle development phenotyping in an externship that has been a
be in the UK or abroad, they may relate to in zebrafish embryos” supervised by transformative experience in my
a specific area of medicine or take them Caroline Pellet-Many, Denis Larkin & veterinary education. The combination
outside the usual range of placements. Claire Russell” of enhanced clinical skills, expanded
knowledge base, and professional
Summer Studentships are fantastic development has shaped me into
opportunities for students to work with “This summer project has been one a more confident and capable
professional research teams at the RVC of the best and most exciting things veterinarian, poised for a future in
over the summer on a specific research I have ever done, and I am extremely equine practice. The journey from
project. Many students would be unable grateful to the people who funded uncertainty to confidence, made
to participate in such opportunities as the this project and my supervisors for possible by financial assistance, is a
summer is the time they earn money to helping me learn and get involved testament to the invaluable role that
help fund their education, however these as much as possible during all the bursaries can play in shaping the
studentships provide the students with a experiments and data analysis.” future of veterinary students.”
stipend, so they are earning whilst learning.
Kristina Smirnova Alice Goff

SUPPORTING TEACHING
In recent years the fund has supported
SUPPORTING SPORTS the purchase of a number of teaching

Many of you will have fond memories simulators which are playing a vital role in
of the sports clubs you were involved helping prepare students and teach them
with at the RVC and the funds you key handling and clinical skills before
donate continue to support these clubs, they work with live animals. This year we
enabling them to have professional were delighted to add a new Hereford
training, and buy equipment and kit. cow calving simulator to our collection.

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