Annastaja Grace Rasell is studying LLB Law with Foundation year at our Manchester campus. We spoke with her about her first days at the University, things that inspire her and what her career ambitions are for the future.
By Editorial Team. Published 16 December 2024.
I was born in New Zealand and moved to England when I was just a year old. Half of my family is in the UK and the rest are spread around New Zealand, Australia and Hong Kong. We really are dotted all over the world and this has opened my eyes to various ways of the world and other perspectives.
I knew I wanted to go to The University of Law because of how dedicated and specialised the time with your lecturer is. I decided to go when I got my place as it was always my first choice. My career ambition is to be a successful barrister; I was inspired by cases in the news of miscarriages of justice which gave me the motivation to make a positive change in our society to people's lives who are affected by unlawfulness and unfair trials.
I am still in the early days of my education, so I haven’t faced many obstacles of note. However, I know when they come up I will be supported by the University to overcome them, as I have already had excellent ports of call to reach out to whenever I have had a query or concern.
When I look back on my first few days at the University, I certainly felt nervous but very excited. It has now been some time, I am settled in and love attending university. It has definitely lived up to my expectations and I am enjoying watching my friendships blossom and my support network grow.
I’ve been busy with exams recently and tend to like to focus on one thing at a time to help manage my workload. However, something I have seen recently that has impacted how I see the world, is the Hawkings' court case in America. Maya was awarded a $220 million dollar pay-out due to the crimes against her and the trauma it caused. This made me see some good and hope in the world as her case was horrific and I am glad she finally got the justice she deserved. It has motivated me to carry on working hard to help make my stamp on the world and help others as a successful barrister.
In terms of my five year plan, I hope to see myself working my way up towards my longer term ambitions.
Find out more about what student life is like on our LiveProspectus or check out our course pages if you’re interested in studying the LLB like Annastaja.
