Inaugural Lecture Series 2007/08 - University of Liverpool

18
Dragon-slayer Laban tells his story
Few people these days can write ‘dragonslayer’
on their CV. But then again, few people
have emerged from the hit BBC TV show
Dragons’ Den with a £60,000 cheque and the
personal backing of James Caan, one of
Britain’s richest men.
Laban Roomes did and retold his tale when
he was invited to be the keynote speaker at
the launch of the Careers and Employability
Service’s newest programme – The Next
Big Thing.
The aim of The Next Big Thing is to help
students at the University develop enterprise
and entrepreneurial skills – skills epitomised in
abundance by both by Laban and the TV
Dragons. And, as Laban himself argued,
these are skills that everyone can develop.
And he should know.
Laban’s career as an entrepreneur got off to
an inauspicious start. His family were poor
and to make ends meet he toured the
neighbourhood being paid to cut hedges. By
The University of Liverpool Alumni
Scholarships have been in
operation since 2000 and many
students have benefited from the
financial rewards.
Scholarships were also one of the
areas alumni could choose to support
during the recent Benefactors’ Fund mail
and phone campaign which, by the end of
December 2007 had raised overall more
than £107,000 from 660 donors. A new
telephone campaign gets underway early
in 2008.
Ten Alumni Scholarships are awarded
each year, and during the course of their
studies, students and donors have the
opportunity to meet each other at a
number of events – something which
donors find tremendously rewarding.
Three current Alumni Scholars told
Precinct what difference the award has
made to them:
Indrani
Karpha
I am now
entering the fourth
year of my
medical degree. I
chose the
the time he was 11 he was earning more
money than his mum.
But it wasn’t green fingers that Laban was
interested in acquiring but gold fingers. After
leaving school, Laban trained to become a
gold-plater. After several years in the job he
developed his own gold plating machine
which applies genuine 24 carat gold, silver,
platinum, nickel and even chrome to hundreds
of metallic items.
What took him to the next level, however, was
the decision to enter the TV show Dragons’
Den. After surviving the traditional verbal
mauling Laban emerged with funding and the
personal support from multimillionaire
business tycoon, James Caan.
The message of the evening – and The Next
Big Thing programme – is that through the
resources and expertise of the Careers and
Employability Service, Liverpool students have
access to a fantastic range of actual and
potential business opportunities.
University of Liverpool because it is one of
the top five universities for Medicine and
has a modern style of teaching which
involves PBL, or problem based learning. I
am a member of the committee for
Liverpool Medical Students’ Society
(LMSS) and last year was the publications
secretary for the Society which meant I
was the editor of the LMSS magazine
called the ‘Sphincter’. I have just been
elected to the committee again and will be
one of the charity representatives.
Receiving the scholarship has taken away
some of the financial pressure. It has
mean that I was also able to spend some
time last Summer as a volunteer in one of
the nursing homes in Calcutta set up by
Mother Theresa where I was able to take
over medical supplies. I have also just
returned from five weeks in Belize, as part
of my course, where I was helping out in
some of the local hospitals and villages.
My ambition is to qualify as a doctor and
continue in a medical career.
Andrew Billington
I am currently studying Mathematics
and hope to pursue a career in finance,
perhaps involving actuary work. This
Alumni Scholarship has enabled me to
concentrate on my studies and purchase
essential books for my course. When I am
Alumni
Scholarships
not studying I play the drums and guitar in
a band and like going to concerts. I think
Liverpool is a fantastic place to study and
I have made lots of new friends here in the
city. The scholarship has made me feel
more secure and enabled me to enjoy
university life to the full.
Toby Haslinger
I am a fifth year medical student and
am due to start my first job as a junior
doctor in August. This Alumni Scholarship
has enabled me to concentrate on my
degree and purchase books for my
course. Studying at Liverpool has helped
me to develop skills and learning
strategies that will assist me throughout
my career and encourage continued
learning. The scholarship has been of
enormous benefit to me and has meant I
have not had to worry so much about
money so I could focus on my studies. My
long term ambition is to be a consultant,
and when I am not working I enjoy playing
chess, reading, walking, football, tennis
and snooker.
For more information about the
Benefactors’ Fund, or events planned for
donors to the University, please contact
Elizabeth Adams, Stewardship Officer, on
0151 795 4639 or email
elizabeth.adams@liv.ac.uk