UEL celebrates industry partnership successes

The University of East London (UEL) held its annual Student and Partner Celebration at the University’s Stratford Campus on 13 June 2024, showcasing the achievements of students who have prospered with the support of UEL’s industry partners.

This event reflects UEL’s Vision 2028 strategy, which has as one of its key aims the promotion of social mobility and the creation of inclusive career opportunities for students.

The Student Celebration Awards honoured students for their exceptional contributions and achievements in various categories, including Intern of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Freelancer of the Year, Mentee of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, and Placement Student of the Year.

Hosting the event, Professor Paul Marshall, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Careers, Enterprise, and Talent Gateway at UEL, expressed his gratitude to the partners and students. He said,

We honour our partners who work with us on social mobility programmes, diversifying early talent pipelines, and providing career-enhancing opportunities to our students and graduates.

We also celebrate our talented students who have not only participated in our flagship programmes but have also taken proactive steps in their career development, engaging with our industry partners and serving as excellent ambassadors for the University.

Our success is built on collaboration and a shared commitment to creating inclusive, accessible, and aspirational career paths for our students. We strive to be a leading careers-focused university, transforming lives through education and driving social mobility.

Laman Suleymanli, who’s studying for an MBA in Sustainable Energy, won Placement Student of the Year in the Student Celebration Awards. Speaking after being presented with her award by Professor Marshall, she said, “I’m so thrilled to be here. This placement was part of my MBA course, at the International Business Times, an online newspaper. My role was marketing and business development associate.

“Before coming here from Azerbaijan, I wanted to reskill myself in sustainable energy. I searched lots of universities in the UK and chose UEL because of the courses that were available. I particularly loved the MBA Sustainable Energy course which was available only at UEL. I’m very happy to be here.”

Professor Marshall also took the opportunity at the event to announce two new career programmes at UEL: the Integrated Career Development Pathway and the Graduate Success Service.

The Integrated Career Development Pathway will provide students with hands-on experience by working directly with industry partners in real-world applications and to industry standards. This initiative is supported by five sponsors: Siemens, Barts Health, Enterprise, Skyscanner, and ExCeL.

An executive from one of those companies, Simon Burgess, Head of Sales and Solutions Development at Siemens, noted how pleased his company was to be working with the University on programmes like the pathway. He said,

I am always blown away by the activities that UEL does to support its students and connect them with employer partners. At Siemens, we have recently taken on seven interns from UEL and they have made a really important contribution to our business. We’re really proud of our partnership with UEL and hope to continue working together for many years.

The other new careers programme, the Graduate Success Service, will be launched on 1 July 2024 and is designed to offer additional support to graduates once they leave the University. “When our students transition to graduation, we continue to support them in those critical first few years post-graduation,” Dr Marshall explained, “the Graduate Success Service aims to increase the visibility of these activities.”

The service will also enhance support for UEL’s large Indian alumni community by appointing a careers advisor based in India.

Professor Marshall said, “UEL is dedicated to the long-term success of its graduates, both locally and internationally, ensuring they have access to the necessary resources and support throughout their careers.”

Before the awards, Olympic champion Christine Ohuruogu MBE delivered an inspiring keynote address, sharing her journey from being a young girl growing up in Newham, through her success as a professional athlete to her current career in sports arbitration and consulting.
Christine said, “Newham serves as a reminder of my roots. Growing up, it was important to excel despite negative perceptions about Newham and east London. UEL’s efforts to positively impact the community demonstrate the power of innovation and creativity.”

As a visiting ambassador for UEL, Christine praised the University’s work within the Newham community, particularly its Sport in your Future programme which offers local schoolchildren the chance to try out a diverse range of sports and activities.

She said, 

I’ve just spent a fun morning with the Sport in your Futures programme. There were around 450 youngsters trying out wheelchair basketball, breakdancing, skateboarding, and seated volleyball. These are young people who never would have had the opportunity to try these sports. It’s a real credit to UEL for thinking outside the box.

I’m really happy that UEL is trying to make a positive impact in the community. We are really seeing legacy in motion, so it’s a real privilege to join UEL in this way.

This year, the celebration took place as part of the University’s Innovation and Enterprise Summer Festival, a cornerstone event of the University’s Year of Science.

With this in mind, the Student and Partner Celebration began with a panel discussion entitled “Can AI be the Great Equaliser for Inclusivity in Recruitment?”

Experts from diverse fields explored how artificial intelligence can transform recruitment to make it more equitable and inclusive. The panel featured insights from Nicky Garcea (Cappfinity), Anthony Malumbe (Accenture), Dr Julie Wall (University of West London), Dr Mohammad Hossein Amirhosseini (UEL), Tracey Dawes (Reed Talent Solutions), Alexander Maxwell-Cole (UEL), and Sandy Tung (Greater London Authority).