Farzana is a first year Neuroscience student at Queen Mary University of London with a passion for understanding the intricate workings of the brain. Thanks to the generosity of our alumni, Farzana was awarded the Annual Fund Scholarship to support her through her studies.
My name is Farzana and I live with mum and dad, and younger brother in East London. My parents are both Bangladeshi and moved here in the early 2000s. I only have my immediate family here in the UK, the rest of my family live in Bangladesh so that can be quite difficult for us, especially when money is tight, and we can’t visit them. My mum and dad work hard to provide for me but due to their various health conditions, my financial support is limited.
I chose to study at Queen Mary University because I love the diversity of the institution and have found it so welcoming! I had originally applied to study Medicine, but Queen Mary offered me the opportunity to study Neuroscience and I am so glad I accepted their offer! I am in my first year studying Neuroscience and I have been enjoying it so far. I enjoy independent study as I get the freedom to manage my own workload, and I thoroughly enjoy my lectures. I love the practical lessons I have finally learned how to use a microscope properly which is great! They have great equipment too which is brilliant. We recently got to extract DNA, which was interesting, but I look forward to the dissections and learning even more about how our brains work.
I have always had to be cautious and careful with money, so this scholarship has really helped me find a bit more financial security. The bursary enabled me to buy and iPad for my studies and it feels so good to finally be able to pay and do things for myself instead of having to ask family knowing they’re struggling too. I am also hoping to start badminton classes and purchase a gym membership to support my physical and mental wellbeing. With this scholarship I feel like I can participate in so many more activities because previously things I wanted to do felt unnecessary but now I can engage with other aspects of life that I haven’t before.
Students are definitely feeling the pressures of financial insecurity. I know a lot of people get loans through student finance which feels like you’re safe and you’re getting money in your bank but it’s a lot of debt and I am already thinking about it.
In the future, I would like a career in research or healthcare. Studying Neuroscience has opened so many doors for me and I’m just looking forward to the future and all the potential opportunities. I would really love to travel too as I haven’t been able to travel much due to the lack of funds.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to make the best of my life and engage in all sorts of things that I haven’t been able to do before.