Nauris' story
Amazing things can happen when our alumni community join together. Nauris Kalnins, a first year Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence student, had his world turned upside by the current pandemic. It is only thanks to alumni support that he is able to continue his studies and fulfil his potential. Read his story below and find out what a difference your support can make:
My name is Nauris and I am a first-year mature student at Sussex, studying Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence. I am writing to you from the beautiful Sussex campus, where I am in lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
I am far away from my friends in the UK and my family, who live in Latvia, where my sister has lost her job and my father is on reduced hours. The three jobs that I have been working to support myself while studying are no longer offering me any hours. I simply cannot afford to pay my rent, as well as buy food and other essentials.
It is only thanks to our alumni community that I am surviving the current situation.
Perhaps like you, my journey to Sussex was hard fought. I made many mistakes when I was younger, including dropping out of high school in Latvia. Eventually I decided to change my life for the better.
I moved to the UK where I worked in a factory and, later, joined an Access to Higher Education: Humanities and Social Science course. With a lot of hard work, I graduated as Student of the Year and applied to Sussex – a world class research university – with a view to becoming a research professional.
My first year has been incredible. From the course materials to the wonderful academics I have learnt from, studying here has been the happiest time of my life. I have been working three jobs to support myself, but still manage to find enough time for my studies. I even finished second in the University’s Global Design Challenge.
But these are new and challenging times. No matter how much I want to work, the current situation was forcing me into a cycle of debt that would have led to me abandoning my studies and my dream of becoming a researcher.
Someone just like you stopped that from happening, by making a gift to the Sussex Fund.
To make your gift, please visit the giving page.
Thank you so much to everyone who is helping Sussex Students at the moment. It really does make a world of difference.
Yours sincerely,
Nauris Kalnins
First Year, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence
Please visit our giving page and make a donation to help students like Nauris today.