What were you doing before you came to Keele?

“I graduated from my LLB in Colombia on December 2012. But prior to that I was working for the Colombian government, in childhood, elderly, everything that’s do to with family matters. And I worked for 4 years at Colombian government.”

Why did you choose Keele?

“The first reason is that after my job, I realised that I really like the topic that I was working in… so afterwards I started searching through the Internet for different universities where I could find it and I saw the Keele LLM on Law and Society, and it had some modules that could help me out in what I was trying to look, and so that was it – I then started searching a little bit more about Keele and I realised that it was a really good option. And that was the main reason! And the second reason was that I realised it was going to be the same cost studying in Colombia or studying abroad, and I realised that for my life experience it was better to do it abroad, and to be not only in England but Europe and have that experience of living outside my country.”

Describe how you felt when you learnt that you had received the scholarship?

“It was great! I was at a friend’s lunch for her birthday, and I received the message in which it was announced that I gained the scholarship, I was so excited! I had been talking to my wife and we knew that it was going to be much more difficult without that money. I mean we had our savings but having the scholarship just made it all so easier.”

How have your first few weeks been – what are your first impressions of Keele?

“It’s just so beautiful, the campus is wonderful. It’s so big, so green, I love it. And besides that, all that has to be with administrative stuff and everything, it’s very organised and what I like the most is that despite the fact that my teachers have all this diplomas and stuff and social status, they don’t care about that, they just sit with you and talk to you. The welcome was really really good, it’s really nice to be here.”

What are your hopes, dreams and ambitions for the year ahead?

“Besides of course of graduating from my Master’s, I want to take the most advantage of all this experience, I want to make the most of it, to live it to the maximum. Get to know people, get to know UK’s culture (we have already tried the food, and pints!). But that would be it, besides my Master’s degree, that’s the most important – I want to make the most of it!”