Page 10 - ACT Paws and Hooves - Autumn 2023
P. 10
Empowering
our future
lifesavers
Amber our ACT Catt Scholar
We work with charitable trusts, skills, conduct research and build that Amber, our second ACT Catt
individual donors, and alumni to contacts. However, due to extra travel Scholar graduated this summer.
create scholarships, grants and and accommodation costs it can be Amber told us,
bursaries. These help our students an expensive part of the course. Josh
overcome barriers to higher was awarded an EMS+ Bursary to It is difficult to
education and make a meaningful attend a placement at a specialist
impact in research and clinical exotics hospital in Wales. express my gratitude
care. The potential of philanthropic Josh was excited to secure the for my scholarship -
gifts is huge. From helping placement of his dreams but told us without this help, I would
students enter the profession “I quickly started to panic when the
of their dreams, to empowering realism of financial constraints hit not have been able to
research into endangered species. continue studying and
me”. As this is Josh’s second degree,
Budding exotics vet he’s not entitled to a student loan. To my life would look very
support his studies Josh has a part-
helped by bursary time job and would need to commute different now.
to London at weekends for his shifts "The scholarship has not only helped
Vet students undertake at least 26 plus find accommodation in Wales.
weeks of practical work experience, An EMS+ Bursary helped Josh meet me massively, but it's also helped
known as Extra Mural Studies (EMS). these costs. my mum. Being a single mum and
These career-informing placements medically retired she naturally worried
offer a valuable opportunity to practise The placement made Josh realise about me getting through university
“the years of vet school were paying without financial support. The
Josh gives a panther chameleon a off”. He gained exposure to lots of scholarship helped relieve this worry
health check on his EMS placement for us both. I would not be a veterinary
interesting cases, from a tortoise
who had a shell debridement to a nurse without the Catt Scholarship,
goose who had an enucleation. He I really do owe my future career to the
commented, “The scope of cases and generosity of Elizabeth Catt."
hands-on experience was absolutely Amber suturing in theatre
unforgettable. Without the bursary it
would have been near impossible to
gain the experience I did.”
Vet nurse graduates
thanks to legacy gift
Unable to fulfil her dreams of working
with animals, Elizabeth Catt left us a
generous gift in her will. She wanted
to help students overcome financial
constraints to study veterinary nursing
at the RVC. We’re thrilled to announce
10
