B6 Alumni Member, Claire Taylor, Inspires EPQ Students

Former Sixth Form Bolton student, Claire Taylor, joined us from her studies at University of Bath via MS Teams last week to speak to our Level 3 Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) group about the EPQ process and how she achieved an A* with her project.

The EPQ is a personal project that is devised and managed by the student, externally assessed and well respected by universities. Claire’s EPQ explored personality type and the effectiveness of mindfulness as a therapy. Claire, now in her second-year studying Psychology at Bath, on a clinical pathway, introduced her project and presented her findings. She also engaged in a Q&A discussion. Questions were posed to Claire ranging from how the EPQ prepared her for university applications and her degree through to discussing areas of the EPQ such as developing clear objectives, maintaining good time-management and plans and, effective referencing, reflection and critical thinking.

Claire told the students how her EPQ supported her to demonstrate her passion for Psychology and ability to engage confidently in academic writing in her university personal statement, as well as support with access programmes and contextual offers. She also expressed that the EPQ acted as a positive springboard in her written academic skills amongst her science-based A levels, alongside helping her with units of work at university closely linked to her project, such as Social Psychology. Claire advised the students to utilise their time effectively by looking at their working patterns and timetables and ensuring a motivation plan was in place to maintain stamina throughout the project. Other advice given included reflecting on and referencing sources consistently as students progressed with their reports as well as recognising that working with other EPQ students can not only be beneficial for increasing motivation and accountability, but coaching of critical thinking and writing and proofreading reports is useful for refining the report.

Alisa Fox who studies A levels in Biology, Chemistry and Psychology and L3 Core Maths commented:

“I found the talk with Claire extremely helpful, as having some of my questions answered made me feel more reassured about the reasons for doing an EPQ, because of the skills you gain for the future. Listening to her talk not only about what helped her, but also what she struggled with during the process, helped me to understand that the setbacks are a main part of what she learnt from. Overall, it made me more confident going forward.”

Aisha Yasar, who studies A levels in Maths, Chemistry and Physics also remarked:

“Having the opportunity to get a former student's perspective regarding my questions was invaluable and gave me more confidence in completing my EPQ.”

Amie-Leigh Farrimind, who studies A levels in Sociology. Psychology and Chemistry and L3 Core Maths stated:

“I found the discussion with Claire to be really insightful regarding the process of writing the EPQ report.”

EPQ teacher, Lee Dickson, commented:

“It was great to welcome Claire back again. This is the second time Claire has returned to support our learners with their EPQ studies. Whilst last year she provided personalised mentorship with some learners following her talk, this year she once again provided excellent, bespoke insights into the process of managing an academic research project, from effective scheduling and task prioritisation through to the importance of peer collaboration during the reflection and report development stages. The students were impressed with Claire’s advice and guidance, being inspired by her to crack on with their projects with growing confidence.”

The Sixth Form Bolton is grateful to Claire for taking the time out of her busy schedule to speak with our learners. Learn more about the EPQ here