I'm a 4th Year undergraduate geology student at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, UK. My Laidlaw research is focused primarily on understanding how early life interacted with its environment and how this environment may have in turn impacted upon lives evolution. In summer 2019, I undertook 2 weeks fieldwork in South Africa for my Laidlaw scholarship, collected samples and images. My research scope has adapted as I have continued my Laidlaw journey. I started off by looking at what 2.5 billion-year-old (Ga) rocks can tell us about the chemistry of ancient oceans, but after my fieldwork, I changed my focus to look at even older (3.47 Ga) rocks which contain evidence of some of the oldest life on Earth. I am spending summer 2020 investigating how the organisms preserved in these rocks may have biomineralised magnetic minerals and used these to navigate using Earth's magnetic field. I'm a classic crazy rock person, with a passion for the outdoors, rock music, and extreme sports like whitewater kayaking and mountain biking. I grew up in the Scottish Borders and have spent my life exploring the Scottish Mountains. Geology has taken me all over the world so far, from Greenland to the Alps and the U.A.E., and I'm certainly looking forward to more adventures to come!

I work in UCL Education and Student Affairs at UCL as a Project Manager. Our office has responsibility for improvements in education and the student experience, including the integration of teaching and research. I have managed high profile projects including a Graduate Support Scheme and a Review of Postgraduate Education. I currently manage the day to day administration of the Laidlaw Programme.

Bethany is a practising screenwriter and film producer who was a Laidlaw Scholar in the University of York's first cohort in 2017-18. She set up a production company with her partner Patrick the Isle of Man, where they now produce films and write screenplays. Their first short documentary, MERA, premiered at Festival Interceltique de Lorient, Brittany in August 2019 and their short drama, The Lost Wife, is in postproduction. Their scripts have placed in multiple international screenwriting competitions. Bethany is passionate about helping others to develop, especially those considering writing or the film industry as a career path.

Final-year Durham student studying Politics; President of Durham Laidlaw Scholars' Organisation; Incoming ESRC-funded MA-PhD student in NINE DTP. My research so far has covered ideological identity in left-wing student activism, examining the interplay of social movement theory and the philosophy of identity, and my general research interests include citizenship education, democratic theory and the occasional bit of political anthropology. Outside of my studies it's mainly twentieth-century literature, cocktails and cooking!

Since 2015, I have been passionate about ending poverty in the UK. I began my journey as a campaigner against poverty in my local area with Poverty Ends Now, a young person lead group ran by Children North East. Since then, I have represented the UK in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and other positions of influence with poverty as my main focus point. My Laidlaw Scholarship research project is all about the relationship between language, meaning and poverty. By understanding and changing unhelpful public discourse about poverty, we can start to shift power.

I'm a third-year biology student at the University of York. I'm originally from Switzerland but came to the UK to continue my studies! I am particularly interested in human and medical biology. My Laidlaw research project focuses on the C-terminus of the Tmem184b protein that is involved in neurodegeneration. I aspire to be a great leader and a strong woman who can lead her team towards the goals we want to achieve!

I am an alumna of the Laidlaw Programme at the University of St Andrews, where my research project focused on contemporary literature from the Comoros islands. I am currently a PhD researcher in Comparative Literature at the University of St Andrews, where I study recent literary translations produced in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.

I'm a third-year English student at the University of St Andrews! My primary research areas are Early Modern Literature and I am particularly interested in the intersection of religious beliefs and gender roles at that time. In my spare time, I'm a CV adviser with the University's careers centre and I manage the programming at St Andrews Radio - the only radio station in St Andrews!

I'm a third-year student at St Andrews studying English! My research is into spoken word poetry and its connection to politics, particularly in Edinburgh (it's a bit niche but I love it). I am also part of the feminist society and a public face of Nightline. I love to meet new people and bake what is objectively too much shortbread at odd hours.

Economics scholar researching my own alternative to GDP!

I am a Laidlaw and University of Leeds Alumni - My Laidlaw research project investigated if a community-based dance programme could improve the physical and psychological wellbeing of socio-economically disadvantaged older adults. Here is a link to a short film of my research: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNOL8AuAKRs&t=3s I am interested in sport, health, performance, injury prevention and personal development. I currently coach strength and conditioning to youth athletes to improve their athletic performance.

I am currently doing my MPhil in Sociology & Demography in the University of Oxford. My research interests lie in the intersection between genetics and social structures in the production of inequalities. 

Graduate in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) from Durham University. Have conducted research on climate security in the Israeli-Palestinian context. Experience in public speaking in an academic context, journalism, and journalistic editing.

I am a Career Development Fellow in the Psychology Department at Durham University, where I research the psychological processes that enable people to adapt, remain motivated, and flourish in challenging environments. My research sits at the intersection of resilience science, Self-Determination Theory, and well-being. I am particularly interested in understanding how individual, social, and environmental resources interact to support resilient well-being across diverse contexts. My doctoral research examined these processes among polar expeditioners living and working in isolated, confined, and extreme environments, using mixed methods to explore how basic psychological needs underpin resilient functioning. I am now extending this work beyond polar environments to investigate resilient well-being in higher education, sport, and other high-challenge settings. My research adopts a socioecological perspective, recognising that resilience emerges through the dynamic interaction between people and their environments rather than residing solely within the individual. Alongside research, I teach quantitative and qualitative research methods, statistics, and psychology at undergraduate level, supervise student research, and enjoy translating psychological science into practical applications for education, sport, organisations, and communities. Before entering academia, I spent over two decades working in community development and youth work, founding and leading a social enterprise supporting children, young people, and disadvantaged communities. These experiences continue to shape my research philosophy: I believe the best psychological science should not only advance theory but also improve people's lives. My work combines rigorous empirical research with a strong commitment to real-world impact, and I am always interested in collaborating with researchers and practitioners working in resilience, motivation, well-being, Self-Determination Theory, higher education, sport psychology, extreme environments, and community-based research.

It is only fitting that a leading university offers a prestigious course in leadership. The Laidlaw Undergraduate Research and Leadership Scholarship at the University of York equips self-motivated and ambitious undergraduate students with the knowledge, skills and experience to become leaders in their chosen fields.

The University of Toronto joined the Laidlaw Undergraduate Research and Leadership Program in 2018 with the first group of scholars beginning their research in 2019. Funded by Lord Laidlaw and driven by his passion for student development, the scholarship at the University of Toronto aims to help students develop key skills as they aspire to be leaders in their field.

The Laidlaw Scholarship Programme in Research and Leadership is sponsored by a generous donation from The Rt Hon Lord Laidlaw of Rothiemay, an honorary graduate of the University. This exciting programme equips students with the skills and values to become the leaders of tomorrow in their chosen discipline and beyond University. Over two years Scholars complete a bespoke, intensive leadership training programme. In addition, they participate in two periods of research during which they work on designing, pursuing and reporting a research question in collaboration with an academic in their chosen School. This programme is open to undergraduate students in their penultimate year of study. Please see the Laidlaw website for more information at http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/go/laidlaw

There are 25 annual Laidlaw Scholarships that provide funding to enable you to develop leadership and research skills through a range of personal development activities and two six week periods of project work throughout your time at Leeds.

This prestigious programme at UCL makes available 25 generous bursaries as part of its package of training and research opportunities. The Laidlaw Research and Leadership Programme aims to create the leaders of the future. It is open to ambitious high-performing first year undergraduate students in any discipline who have a desire to undertake research at a high level.