A GAME design student who was originally disengaged with the classroom but overcame personal challenges to find her passion and develop a drive to succeed has been presented with a prestigious award.
Molly Clarke, from Stratford-upon-Avon, has been named Student of the Year 2023 at Evesham New College.
She was also named Creative Arts and Media Student of the Year, and was presented with both awards at a ceremony celebrating the achievements of students of the college, which is part of college group WCG.
A total of 45 awards were presented by subject leaders across 13 departments at the awards evening at WCG’s Pershore College, with students from a wide range of courses recognised for their successes.
Molly was praised for her ambition, determination, the support she gives to her peers as well as the high quality of work she has produced during her games art and design course.
She was also commended for putting herself forward to lead a second-year group project and being pivotal in its success, as well as selecting an ambitious final year project to challenge herself and further develop her skills.
Molly is now set to study games design and development at Coventry University, and has ambitions to pursue a career in the industry.
She said: “I was quite surprised to be presented with the Student of the Year Award as I didn’t think I’d done anything to warrant winning the top award.
“Growing up I enjoyed playing games and I thought it would be interesting to see how they developed which is why I chose to study game design.
“I am grateful to have achieved quite a lot over the years. My proudest achievements have been creating my game at the end of this year as it definitely shows how much my skills have developed, and stepping up to take the lead on our second year group project.
“My tutors have also been really supportive throughout the course, and the knowledge and skills I have gained has given me a really good base to start in university.”
Mark Bonham, director of Evesham New College, added: “It has been an eventful year for students at Evesham New College and I am delighted to celebrate all their successes with this special ceremony.
“Very well done to Molly for being named our Student of the Year, she is a very worthy winner and has been wonderful to see her growth and development throughout her studies.”
