Leona Skelton
Leona Skelton, BA (Hons) History
Leona Skelton's love of history was fuelled at the University of Sunderland where teaching staff inspired her to reach for higher goals.
She said: "I originally planned on going into teaching history in schools but the lecturers at Sunderland unlocked ambition I didn't know I had and now I am committed to being a professional historian."
Leona is now studying for a PhD researching the state of public hygiene in 17th century towns which involves travelling across northern England and Scotland.
Her studies at Sunderland won her a national award when her dissertation was named the UK's best on Scottish history in 2007 by the Royal Historical Society and her work is now set to be published in the popular magazine History Scotland.
She said: "While I had always loved history I never thought I was good enough to be a historian. I wanted to inspire other people but thought I would end up teaching in schools.
"The lecturers at Sunderland were fantastic. They really nurtured me and gave me the confidence and encouragement to reach higher. They pushed me to do first an MA and now the PhD I am working towards which will hopefully help me find a research and academic post in the future.
"I became engrossed in my studies at Sunderland and spent every spare minute researching and writing. I went through a huge transformation during my time at university. My confidence was boosted and my writing improved too, which I think was as a result of the lecturers spending so much time with the students."
Leona now plans to secure an academic post at a university where she can continue her research and inspire future historians.
Leona Skelton, BA (Hons) History, Historian
