“There is so much about my experience that I loved, it's very hard to chose something in particular.”
Students can sometimes struggle to adapt to university life, but not Tsvetelina Dobreva. The BSc Psychology student from Bulgaria embraced life at Sunderland – so much so that she is set to return as Vice President of Education at the Students’ Union.
“I’ve been involved with a few organisations in my time at University.
“I was involved with Voluntary and Community Action Sunderland, and briefly with NERAF (North East Engagement into Recovery from Addication Foundation). I have fundraised for number of charities, including British Red Cross and Breakthrough Breast Cancer, mainly in the summer holidays.
“Also, I volunteer and talk to refugees with the Chaplaincy Centre. I am a member of the First Aid society, and a treasurer for People To people International – Sunderland.”
It’s remarkable that the 21-year-old has managed to pack all of this experience into her time at Sunderland, but it reflects her motivation to pursue a career in psychology – and Tsvetelina isn’t about to slow down.
“I was recently elected to be Vice President of Education in the Students' Union – and I was accepted to do a Masters in Occupational Psychology.
“Hopefully I’ll go on to gain chartership as an occupational psychologist.”
Tsvetelina also received the Sunderland University Professional Award (SuPA) which recognises all the extra curricular activities students have taken during their studies. She was recognised in the ceremony as one of the four SuPA Heroes.
She said: "The Award is assessed by a panel of career advisers and local employers so basically recognises your personal growth linked to employability. During the ceremony I gave a speech about how special I felt as a winner.
"I was a mentee in a Professional Mentoring Scheme that the University offers and I was mentored by a local successful professional, John Green. That was another amazing experience that helped me a lot for my pesonal growth."