Profile
Loretta-Ann Jilks
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About Me:
I currently live in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, where I am a PhD student at Northumbria University 👩🏻🔬 I enjoy eating lots of food 🥞, listening to music 🎶, and relaxing 😴
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My pronouns are:
She/Her
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My Work:
I reconstruct past environments of the Bolivian Amazon in order to understand how the actions of humans have influenced the surrounding environment. I do this using a variety of methods, include pollen, charcoal, and diatoms.
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My Typical Day:
My typical day involves waking up, snoozing my alarm, and then waking up half an hour before I have to leave! I get to work at 9:00am and then I am usually in the lab for most of the day; processing soil to obtain the information I need. If I am not in the lab then I will be at the microscope, counting all of the exciting things! I go home at 4:30pm and watch TV or listen to music.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
If I won the prize money then I would invest it in our outreach programme at the University, where we have run events in the past with a local museum.
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Education:
GCSE’s and A-Levels – Bishop Ullathorne Catholic School, Coventry
BSc and MRes – University of Leicester, Leicester
Present – Northumbria University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
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Qualifications:
11 GCSE’s (A* – B)
3 A-Levels – Geography (B), Psychology (B), English Literature (C).
Geography BSc (Bachelor of Science) – 2.1 Honours
Geography MRes (Masters by Research) – Distinction
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Work History:
Checkout Assistant (Retail)
PPI Complaints Administrator (Banking)
Compliance Officer (Education)
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Employer:
Northumbria University
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My Interview
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What did you want to be after you left school?
First I wanted to be a primary school teacher, but then decided to do a Geography degree before a teaching degree. There I fell in love with research, and here I am now!
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Nope, I was an angel 😇
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
Lab technician
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Enter Shikari
What's your favourite food?
This is a tough one... I have to say burgers or pasta!
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
My three wishes would be - 1) That my family and friends are happy and healthy, 2) That I can continue in research for the rest of my working life, 3) More wishes!
Tell us a joke.
What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta!
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