Catherine Darwen
Catherine graduated with a BA (Hons) in English Literature and Creative Writing.
Catherine Darwen said she is “relieved” to finally be graduating with the Class of 2020, officially marking the end of her time at the University of Worcester and her achievements.
Catherine has just returned from a year teaching in Italy and said she is looking forward to seeing friends again.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said the 22-year-old. “I’ve been wanting to graduate for the past year and a bit. It’s nice to finally get it out of the way and see all my friends again. I think it’s exciting we’re graduating in June, rather than November, as it highlights the uniqueness of our year and the weather is a bonus, too.”
Catherine joined the University straight from completing her A-levels at Christopher Whitehead Language College.
“I’ve lived in Worcester all my life and, admittedly, during Sixth Form I did want to move away,” she said. “However, after looking at my choices, I found that the University’s English Literature and Creative Writing degree was exactly what I was wanting.”
She said that pre-pandemic her university experience was “fantastic”, and while completing her studies from home was challenging, she felt supported throughout.
“The Hive was a massive thing for me, before the pandemic,” she said. “In my third year, I’d go up to the fourth floor, or sit in the cafe, and study for hours. It was so handy having everything I needed in one place. The Hive is such a valuable resource and I’m so glad we’ve got it in our city.
“I was finishing my dissertation when the pandemic hit and had to use the internet for the majority of the my research. It was far easier when I was able to go in and find exactly what I was looking for. I enjoyed losing myself down rabbit holes, my nose buried in piles of books.”
She added: “I really missed being in class for those final few months. I liked seeing everyone’s faces and missed the atmosphere. I was lucky in the sense I lived with my course mates, but, it still didn’t quite feel the same. Creativity feeds off creativity, and for someone who did creative writing, I needed that.
Catherine is now planning to undertake a Publishing MA at Manchester Metropolitan University in September.
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