Fresher Bags £3,000 For Stem Cell Research

NatSci fresher Holly Rees has won a European award for stem cell research she did over the summer.

Holly, from Clare, told The Tab she was “gobsmacked” when her name was read out at the awards ceremony in Helsinki. She said she was “just relaxing at the awards ceremony because I was sure I wouldn’t win anything!”

Brainy Holly (right) with two other contestants

Holly picked up third prize at the EU Contest for Young Scientists for her research into embryonic stem cell differentiation, which could help to find a stem-cell based cure for serious diseases.

She was up against 86 other competitors in the prestigious contest, which “gives students the opportunity to compete with the best of their contemporaries at European level.”

Cream of the crop, Holly walked away with a €3,500 prize – equivalent to over £3,000.

Spurred on by her victory, Holly is “absolutely loving” her first term as a Cantab, and told The Tab: “It’s just impossible to be bored here!”

Already planning to do a PhD in theoretical science, it seems there’s no stopping Holly on her road to scientific success.