Hi! I'm Amanda, a third year Neuroscience student and Laidlaw alum from UCL. I'm Swedish-Persian and grew up in Sweden before moving to London for uni. These days, alongside my studies, I work for the Foundation as a Marketing Assistant.
For my first year research project, I worked on optimising alginate hydrogels for 3D astrocyte culture systems. In simpler terms, I was figuring out the best way to prepare a jelly-like scaffolds so that star-shaped brain cells called astrocytes could grow in three dimensions rather than flat on a dish. This matters because 3D environments mimic the brain more realistically, which could help researchers develop better treatments for neurological disorders!
For my Leadership-in-Action project, I co-created Beyond the Books, a resource designed to help students from underrepresented backgrounds navigate the unwritten rules of university life, from internships and networking to professional opportunities that aren't always obvious if you're the first in your family to go to uni.
Always happy to connect, whether you want to chat about neuroscience, widening access, the Laidlaw experience, or just say hello! One of my favourite things about this community is getting to meet people from different universities and backgrounds, so please do reach out! 🌟
Hey there! I'm Miki, a 2025 scholar pursuing a combined degree in Persian, Arabic and International Relations at the University of St Andrews.
I care deeply about refugee issues - particularly in the Middle East, owing to my personal experiences with refugees in Jordan and Iran. My research project explores how the Jordanian and Lebanese governments' differing policies toward Syrian refugees have influenced their integration into their host societies.
I am a third-year student of English at the University of St Andrews from New Delhi, India, and I'm interested in languanges and literature. My research project explores literature in radical bookshops.
Hello! I’m Henry, a second-year student at the University of St Andrews. Originally from Lancashire, I moved to Scotland in 2023 to pursue an undergraduate degree in modern history. Now entering my third year, my interests primarily revolve around late modernity, covering themes of empire, oppression, and propaganda.
For my Laidlaw research, I am focusing on youth targeted propaganda in Nazi Germany. Specifically, I am analysing the techniques used in the children’s literature of the Third Reich to skew the youth’s morality, comparing this to themes found in the contemporary U.S.. With the recent resurgence of far-right politics, I feel it is crucial to analyse the means and manner of indoctrination, particularly those centred on the youth.
I look forward to connecting with you all and reading about your projects!
Hello! I am an incoming fourth year Mathematics student at the University of St Andrews, and my Laidlaw research project is geared at investigating the intersection between coloniality and mathematics and its impacts on students from the Global South. It is the product of my (rather polar) interests in English Literature and Mathematics!
Hello hello! I am an incoming fourth-year student at the University of St Andrews pursuing a degree in biology. Originally from Kyiv, Ukraine, I moved to Italy in 2013 and have been living there ever since.
Over the course of my academic journey I have had the chance to explore numerous areas in biology, ranging from evolution to bacteriophage discovery to cell systems, out of which epigenetics and gene regulation during development have piqued my interest.
My primary research interest is developmental biology, which arose from my fascination with how multicellular organisms originate from a single cell. Therefore, my research focus for the first summer of the Laidlaw Scholars programme was the investigation of abdominal metamorphosis in Dipteran insects. To do so, I used fixation and Hoechst staining in addition to microscopy to study cell movement during several developmental stages in 2 species of flies.
As for my leadership in action (LiA) project, I decided to assist biodiversity monitoring and conservation efforts in the heart of the Amazon rainforest jungle in Peru.
If I am not in lectures or studying in the library, I can be found working on a short story, watching films (and logging them on Letterboxd), reading old science fiction, or on a hike capturing the nature around me through photography. Having grown up in a multicultural setting, I enjoy learning more about the different cultures that exist on our planet, whether it is through cuisine, music, travelling, or linguistics. The latter partially explains my grasp of nearly five languages, though I have to warn you that my fluency differs dramatically. Otherwise, I also love spending time with animals, playing board games, or just talking.
More than anything, I am always happy to meet like-minded individuals who are curious about the world. Thus, please feel free to reach out or connect with me on LinkedIn!
Hi! I'm Alina, a Biochemistry undergraduate fascinated by health sciences, my long-term goal is making healthcare more accessible, equitable, and effective. For my Laidlaw research, I stepped outside my home School of Biology into the School of Medicine to study direct-to-consumer health screening (think at-home genetic tests). These tests promise autonomy but risk misinformation, false positives, and overdiagnosis; so my work pushes for a shift from early diagnosis to optimal diagnosis, where a result is only useful if it's actually clinically actionable.
For my Leadership in Action project, I co-led When Science Dances; using Scottish ceilidh dance to teach gravitational-wave physics to children in underserved communities across Glasgow and Shetland, in partnership with Science Ceilidh, Wild Skies Shetland, and the University of Glasgow's Institute for Gravitational Research. It was a joy to take something as abstract as spacetime and turn it into something kids could dance out and giggle through, and to watch the project grow from a Glasgow workshop series into a Shetland outreach programme along the way.
Outside of "work hours", I'm always on the move. In uni I picked up judo, which has since become kind of my whole personality (big shout out to USTA Judo, I love you). I also absolutely love cycling; started as a way of coping with not having a car, ended as a full-blown addiction. Beyond sport, I've got a soft spot for anything creative: embroidery, crochet, photography, and losing hours to discovering electronic music. Basically: endlessly curious, always chasing whatever new thing has caught my eye.
Hey hey! :)
I'm Tamar, a Financial Economics student at the University of St Andrews, based in historic and picturesque Scotland. I am originally from Georgia (the country!), heading into my 3rd year of undergraduate study. This summer marks my first as a Laidlaw Scholar, and I am incredibly excited to be undertaking my research project: “Beyond Words: Women, Equality and the Early Esperanto Language Community.” Through historical artefacts, I will be exploring how the early Esperanto movement (1900s–1920s) created inclusive spaces for women, challenging the gender norms of its era. Given that gender inequality remains a pressing issue today, it is fascinating to explore how earlier generations managed to confront these challenges, despite arguably more rigid societal constraints.
You might be surprised by my choice of a socio-historic topic — after all, I study finance and economics. But I have always been fascinated by interdisciplinary thinking. My curiosity often leads me to explore humanities subjects at length, and I take every chance I get to expand my horizons beyond my degree. What's more, this project gives me the perfect excuse to pick up another language! Language learning is one of my greatest passions (although I must confess I dabble more than I master), and I am always on the lookout for compelling study materials.
Outside of academics, I adore capturing the beauty of my surroundings, travelling and planning future trips, reading, watching great cinema, and unwinding with music — I even brought my national instrument, the Panduri, to St Andrews all the way from Georgia and strum it as much as I can to keep a little piece of home with me.
If any of this sparks your interest — whether you got curious about my research, want to exchange language-learning tips, or just chat about shared interests, I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to reach out here or connect with me on LinkedIn. Look forward to connecting with you! :)
