Hannah Blagden

Meet Hannah. Hannah overcame personal challenges to her learning journey and graduated with more than a degree.

Embracing different ways of learning

Hannah found school and A-Levels a challenge and worked hard to gain a university place. Whilst at Herts, Hannah found out that she was dyslexic and with the support of the University’s Student Wellbeing services she discovered ways to work differently. Hannah says, ‘You need to understand how you learn to be able to learn. The University of Hertfordshire provided a supportive environment for me to do this.’

In her final year Hannah won a Hertfordshire Business School Rising Star award and an award for Transformation through Embracing Adversity, Hannah says, ‘I’m so proud of myself for graduating. Secondary school was a challenge, but at the time I didn’t realise how important it was. All these steps allowed me to find my feet at university and gave me a passion to follow a career in education.

Being part of a community

I really loved my student experience at Herts. I learned so much about myself, as well as gaining qualifications and making friends. I remember walking out of one of my first classes with new friends, feeling like I belonged somewhere and excited to learn more. Marketing strategy topics were always my favourite and I liked challenging myself to think bigger, it was how I got my best grades.’

‘I took the opportunity to be a School Community Officer (SCO). Mental health has always been close to my heart and when I found out I was dyslexic, I understood the importance of being able to voice challenges I was facing, so I wanted to help my peers do the same.'

Being a SCO also led Hannah to get involved with the Go Herts award where she received a Gold Award and a Student Success Award. She says, ‘I initially thought the programme sounded like more work on top of my course, but I found I was recognised for things I was doing every day to better myself and others. By achieving awards like Go Herts, you can graduate with more than a degree, and this helps open doors for your future.’

Hannah’s career and future ambitions

After graduating Hannah worked in the marketing industry for two years and experienced working with big brands like Dell and Panasonic. Now Hannah has decided to take her career in a new direction and is a teaching assistant in a secondary school, building on her passion to help others. Her new ambition to become a business teacher or SENCO.