"I've made friends for life here"
Ava Wollnick-Halliday studied BA Creative Writing
"I hated education when I was younger. I left school at 13 and went to music college from 16-18 and by the time I finished that, I thought I was done with education. Then time went on, and as I got more into creative writing, I realised that I wanted a community around me. And I wanted to find it in London – the city where everything is happening. So, I chose to study my degree at Birkbeck, and I’m so glad I did – I’ve made friends for life here.
My classmates were amazing – such encouraging and intelligent people who supported me and each other. Now I’m working on getting my poetry and music out there, and I’m collaborating with people I met on my course. Getting a degree was an important experience for me. Studying at Birkbeck made me try things that I never would have ordinarily. It helped me figure out the direction I want to go in."