Alumni Leadership Board

Rachel Appiah is an entrepreneur and Pathways to Law alumni from the 2017-19 cohort. Currently studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Exeter, she has always taken an interest in access to higher education and careers opportunities for students of colour, as well as social mobility.// Nowadays, you’ll likely find Rachel supporting those around her through her university’s African Caribbean Society, mentoring or researching decolonial thought and strategy.

Passionate about enacting social change through access to education, Victoria has spent the last eight years engaging in projects and initiatives that align with this. She uses her personal experiences through public speaking, mentoring and advocacy work to support people from diverse backgrounds to overcome barriers to education, providing them with access to opportunities to reach their full potential. During her time at university she was nationally recognised with the ‘Outstanding Achievement Award’ at the House of Lords for the Student Social Mobility Awards. Most recently, she became one of the global winners of the 2021 McKinsey Achievement Award.

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Victoria is a Keynote Speaker and Writer discussing topics around: social mobility, diversity, intersectionality, personal development, cultural identity, music and pop culture.

Yasmin is a first-year medical student at Imperial College London. She attended the Cardiff Medicine Sutton Trust Summer School in 2019. Coming from a low-income background, she appreciates the importance of social mobility and access to higher education. She has been involved with Sutton Trust as an Alumni Advisor. She also sings in the National Youth Choir of Great Britain, plays in orchestras and fundraises for charities. 

Ask me about…

Life as a medical student and succeeding in medical school applications!

Roger grew up in Aberystwyth, Wales, and attended the 2008 Sutton Trust programme at the University of Cambridge, from which he graduated. He has since moved between the public and private sector, and between the UK, New Zealand and Latvia. He is currently living in London, working for the Joint Biosecurity Centre.  

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The Civil Service, working overseas, studying geography, or at the University of Cambridge, using shared parental leave, becoming a reservist officer.

Kayley is from a farm outside Newry in Northern Ireland and took part in the 2015 US Programme. She graduated from University College Dublin in August 2021 with a degree in Commerce, during which time she worked with Microsoft as a Supply Chain Manager and within Operations with Amazon. She is now working in the Buying Department of Applegreen, a leading forecourt retailer in Ireland, UK and the US.

After gaining such confidence and skills from her Sutton Trust programme and then experiencing the vast educational inequality in her university in Ireland, she gained a deeper appreciation for the brilliant work the Sutton Trust are doing to remove barriers in education in the UK. Armed with these motivators, she is driven in working with the ALB to further social mobility and equal opportunity for all within the UK.

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She would love to hear from alums from Northern Ireland and is happy to chat to anyone with an interest in Big Tech or retail roles, or help anyone looking to study or get into business!

Rory is studying MSc Global Politics at the London School of Economics. Prior to that, he completed a BSc in Political Economy at King’s College London, during which time he spent three years working in the UK Parliament, advised the European Commission as a Young leader of Industry, and stood as a 19-year-old Parliamentary Candidate in the 2017 General Election. He sits on Amnesty International’s first ever Youth Task Force and work on social impact projects as a member of the London Global Shapers hub – an initiative of the World Economic Forum.

Last year, he was recognised by Target Jobs as one of the UK’s Top 10 Undergraduates of the Year for Impactful Social Action, from over 4500 applicants. In 2014 he attended the Sutton Trust’s Economics Programme at the University of Cambridge. He is also on the Civil Service’s Fast Stream graduate programme, the first year of which he’ll spend in the Department of Health and Social Care.  

Daniel is from Peterborough, and is in his second year of studying History and Politics at the University of Oxford. He participated in the Durham University History summer school in 2019, and is the first in his immediate family to got university. Daniel decided to get involved in the Alumni Leadership Board because he wanted to give back for the support the Trust continually provides. Daniel works with a variety of organisations including Zero Gravity, The Social Mobility Foundation and Potential Plus UK among others, focusing on educational inequality and levelling the playing field.

Ask me about…

Studying at Oxford, having a disability, and volunteering in the social mobility space.

Lucy is a Brand Strategy Consultant at Lippincott and an independent musician. She was a participant on the Sutton Trust’s US programme and won a scholarship to attend Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, from which she holds a BA in Political Science and English.  

Ask me about…

The creative industries, especially branding and advertising. I also love to chat with anyone from the midlands, or anyone looking to hear more about studying in the US.

Originally from the North East of England, Dan attended a Sutton Trust Summer School in 2007 and went on to read Medicine at the University of Manchester. He graduated with a first class BSc in Pharmacology & Physiology, partly thanks to a Wolfson Scholarship, alongside his MB ChB (Hons) in 2014. He is currently working as an Anaesthetic Registrar in London. Outside of clinical work, he has a passion for mentorship, education and championing social mobility. 

Zoe is a strategic advisor and certified coach who has spent a decade working in strategic and operational talent roles within technology companies, startups and venture capital. Zoe is currently Talent Partner at EQT Ventures, a global multi-stage VC firm where she supports the investment team and portfolio companies to attract, select and develop people. Previously Zoe was part of the founding team at talent-investor Entrepreneur First (EF) where she built the global talent function, and has also worked in talent roles at Mind Candy and Apple. Zoe is passionate about diversifying the leadership landscape in tech. 

Abda is a business development professional with work experience in cybersecurity companies and tech start-ups in London. She has worked with private and public sector organisations to provide robust security solutions amidst the rising cyber threats. // Abda has decided to get involved in the ALB to contribute to Sutton Trust research projects and build a Sutton Trust Alumni network of professionals in London.

Sofia is from and currently lives in Port Talbot, South Wales. She attended the University of Cambridge Summer School 2013 for Modern Languages. Being the first in my family to enter higher education, she graduated from University of Bristol in 2018 with a First in Italian and Spanish BA. She now works as a freelance journalist and creative consultant. She has written for The Independent, VICE and Cosmopolitan, all with a particular focus on social justice, and most recently is working as a researcher on a documentary series. She is also a Project Co-ordinator of A Writing Chance, a scheme co-founded by Michael Sheen to support aspiring writers from under-represented backgrounds by providing mentoring, bursaries and more. She has long been passionate about social mobility and equality, with a particular focus on increasing opportunities for under-represented voices in the media and creative industries. She firmly believes that when we open up access to these sectors, we can all benefit from a richer culture and a fairer, more democratic society. She is particularly excited to contribute to this goal through the ALB. She has long admired and been influenced by Sutton Trust’s work around Access to the Workplace, and was compelled to be part of shaping policy and direction through joining the ALB.

Ask me about…

Journalism, media and the creative industries, as well as translation and advice about working internationally. She also has a special interest in increasing opportunities for alumni based in Wales.

Muzammil is a Trainee Solicitor at Clifford Chance and has worked across the firm’s Corporate, Real Estate and Capital Markets groups on keynote transactions spanning Europe, Asia, Africa and the US. He has further experience working with investment banks, insurers and start-ups. // He holds an LLB in Law from the University of Leicester and a Masters in Law from BPP University, prior to which he attended the Pathways to Law programme with the University of Nottingham. He works with several schools, colleges and universities with the aim of supporting social mobility and has joined the Alumni Leadership Board to further champion the same.

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Feel free to reach out to Muzammil for any questions related to the fields of Law or Banking!

Farouk currently works as a portfolio manager investing in Africa and the Middle East. Prior to returning to the UK in 2019, Farouk was based in the Middle East for ten years where he was in charge of regional investments for the Saudi pension fund, as well as heading an investment research team for a local firm.  Farouk started his career in London at Lehman Brothers and subsequently Nomura looking at European equities. Farouk holds a MA degree in Economics and Management from Cambridge University. Farouk was born and raised in Lancashire and took part in the Sutton Summer School in 2001 where he spent a week at Cambridge University in the Economics programme. 

Tom is a Policy Advisor at the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, working within the EU Engagement Team as part of EU Strategy and Relations. He has an active interest in community work and social action, with a passion to boost social mobility across the UK and end education inequality.

Before joining the Civil Service, Tom was an experienced teacher and middle leader in West Yorkshire. He completed Teach First’s Leadership Development Programme in 2019. As a teacher, he worked with the UK Parliament to develop pupils’ understand of Parliament and democracy, and became an accredited UK Parliament Gold Teacher Ambassador.

As an undergraduate, Tom studied Law at Newcastle University. He completed the Pathways to Law Programme in 2013 (at the University of Nottingham) and the Pathways to Law Plus Programme in 2014-15. Tom has a Masters in Educational Leadership, where his research focussed on how Science teaching can be improved to meet the growing gap in STEM skills and increase ‘Science capital’ in disadvantaged areas. He also has a National Professional Qualification in Middle Leadership.

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He is always happy to discuss his experiences with alumni, and he has a particular interest in how education can be used to level-up regional inequalities.

Dani is an MChem Chemistry student at the University of Oxford despite attending a failing secondary school in North Yorkshire. He is passionate about youth social action and widening access to higher education. At university, he is JCR President at Worcester College and is a Chemistry Outreach Ambassador for the Salters’ Institute. He attended the Chemistry Summer School in 2019 at Imperial College London.