Angelina L’s UCL Archaeology Offer: A Dream Solidified
Angelina L, a gifted Year 13 Dulwich International High School Suzhou student, has recently received an offer to study Archaeology at UCL!
Discovering Your Passion
It is often said that if you can find a job that you love, you will never have to work a day in your life. During the interview with Angelina, it very rapidly became apparent that she has a genuine passion for archaeology. The seeds for her love of archaeology were planted in Year 10, when Angelina watched a documentary about Egyptology, which she found deeply fascinating. She then watched some YouTubers talking about archaeology and artefacts.
“My parents don't mind what I study. They think that life is short and that you should do whatever you want.”
Egyptology the doorway to Archaeology
Egyptologists study all aspects of ancient Egypt, across time periods from about 7,000 BC to the early Middle Ages. They work from many perspectives, using different approaches and methods ranging all the way from literary theory in the humanities to hard sciences in the physics of radiocarbon dating. They are active as academics, archaeologists, researchers, and museum curators, and they communicate their work as widely as they can. No two Egyptologists have the same interests and focuses.
“I like Egyptology, and it’s the area of Archeology that I know the most about, but I'm not sure if I will continue to study it. Archaeology is such a vast subject, but Egyptology is perhaps the most well-known part of it.”
Angelina explained how she finds the way that Archaeology is represented in popular culture is hilariously ill-conceived and far removed from reality.
Choosing UCL
Angelina explained that she only ever considered going to university in the UK.
“For UK universities, location really matters. Apart from learning, you are also learning how to live and develop independence. I think London is a nice location for this. Also, my best friend, (who graduated from Dulwich) is currently studying psychology at UCL.”
The UCL Institute of Archaeology is one of the largest centers for archaeology, cultural heritage, and museum studies in the whole of the United Kingdom. Founded in 1937, its staff and students actively pursue research on a global scale in the archaeological sciences, heritage studies and world archaeology.
How Dulwich Helped
Angelina had some interesting insights into how Dulwich had helped her to become a better university applicant:
“To be honest, I find that most of my peers at Dulwich are aiming high, striving to get places at top international universities. In other schools I had attended, my peers just wanted to go back to their hometowns."
Dulwich pushes me more; it is a more competitive environment, where everyone is driving in the same direction of achievement. The Teachers are extremely supportive and responsible.”
Richard Nunns
Several times during the interview, Angelina returned to the impact that her university counsellor had had on her successful application to UCL. Angelina’s counsellor is none other than Richard Nunns, the Deputy Director of Dulwich International High School Suzhou.
As Angelina explained, “The school counseling department was really important to my application. Mr. Nunns is really nice. He’s a little bit strict but watches the deadlines carefully! If I didn’t complete a task, he would chase me on Teams, and I’d end up feeling really guilty and do it as soon as possible! Mr Nunns gave me lots of suggestions, and I really appreciated his help. But what I like most about Mr. Nunns is his kindness.”
Advice for our younger students
“By year 11, I was certain that I wanted to study archaeology. I had enough time to prepare and study extracurricular material about the subject. Try more things and find out what you want to do as early as you can. If you decide on your major early, you will have more time to prepare for it, which will make you a stronger applicant. “