Why did you choose Aston University?
Hi, my name is Rodwell, and I studied Law LLB at Aston University.
I decided that I wanted to study law fairly early on, probably in year nine, or so. My parents assumed that my argumentative nature meant that law was the right career for me.
I chose to study at Aston University for a number of reasons. It wasn’t just about good teaching necessarily, even though that was one of the things I really wanted out of my university experience but also somewhere where I felt valued and as if my future actually mattered to the people who were instructing me.
Another thing I will throw in there is that I like the fact that Aston University reached out to students in my demographic. That meant something to me personally because it meant that I would be valued when I arrived here.
What did you like about your time at Aston?
The fact that Aston was a place where I saw a diversity of people, I felt as if I could be myself and that self could be accepted but also helped to develop into its most excellent version, I found that amazing and I really enjoyed that about my experience at Aston.
I had always had more of an interest in commercial law, and I think one of the benefits of an institution like Aston University is that it is very commercially based, the connections to industry are astounding. This means that there is always going to be a way in which you can understand how what you are learning translates to the real-life business that you might end up working at, whether it’s a law firm or a business itself, there is a real sense of understanding of where this fits into the bigger picture.
Tell us about your Freshfields Stephen Lawrence scholarship
One of the massive opportunities that I got, was that my lecturer Dr Daniel Cash sponsored me for the Freshfields Stephen Lawrence scholarship. I didn’t even know there was such a scholarship, I didn’t know what Freshfields was. My aspirations were not as high as Freshfields, I didn’t know I could aim this high at all.
I gave it some thought, and I thought I had nothing to lose, so I decided to apply and was awarded a scholarship and found myself there. It was more than just an internship, it was 18 months worth of experience, coming into the firm getting exposure to different people, there was a lot of mentoring involved. I got exposure to mentors from the Bank of England to Goldman Sachs and mentors even from here at Freshfields. That experience I think transformed my approach not only to my academic life but also my life in general.
I started to see myself as someone who could make a huge difference, someone who deserved to be in the room. Even if I didn’t get the scholarship, just to see myself as someone who could go for opportunities and would be great for them, I think that made a massive difference to how I approached my life.
What advice would you give to future students?
It’s only in institutions where you have lecturers who really care about you and can spot those opportunities where you can find all kinds of doors opening up for you and it’s really great. I think Aston University is a great place to start the rest of your career and hopefully you get out of it as much as I did.