School of Philosophy, Psychology & Language Sciences

Student Awards celebrate achievements of PPLS students

Students from Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences secured 10 nominations across 6 different categories at the Student Awards 2020

UPDATE: PPLS students secured two wins: Philosophy and Mathematics student Nathan Zou won the Student Leadership Award and Philosophy and Politics student Meyra Çoban won the Outstanding Student Representative Award. Well done Nathan and Meyra!

A huge congratulations to our students who have been shortlisted in the Student Awards 2020, a celebration of incredible student achievements across the University of Edinburgh organised by the Edinburgh University Students' Association (EUSA). 

Out of 14 award categories, PPLS students have secured an impressive 10 nominations in 6 categories, with most nominations in the Fostering Student Communities and Outstanding Student Representative Awards. 

Place for All Award 

Meyra Çoban (4th-year MA Philosophy and Politics student) is shortlisted in this award category which recognises students who have contributed to creating a vibrant, inclusive, respectful environment on campus.  

Meyra is EUSA's Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Officer for 2019/20, leading the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Campaign which exists to provide a safe space for BME students to come together, discuss the issues affecting them, and campaign to improve their student experience. 

The Black and Minority Ethic (BME) Campaign | Edinburgh University Students' Association 

Student Leadership Award (winner)

Nathan Zou (2nd-year MA Philosophy and Mathematics student) is shortlisted for this award which recognises student(s) who have contributed to the student community, creating an inclusive and supportive environment in their activities as a Student Leader.  

Nathan is nominated for going above and beyond in the role of Undergraduate Representative for PPLS, with successful initiatives such as the PPLS Intersocietal Council which coordinates society activities across the School. 

Fostering Student Communities Award 

The School has three nominations in this award category, which recognises students who have made a substantial contribution to developing a sense of community within their programme, school or society.  

  • Brittany Blankinship (2nd-year Psychology PhD student) and Olivia Coombes (2nd-year Philosophy PhD student) are both student representatives on their programmes and established SolidariTEA coffee mornings to build connections across the PPLS PhD community.   
  • Nathan Zou was also nominated in this award category for his work on interacting with and integrating peer groups.  
  • Edinburgh University Linguistics Society involves Linguistics student at all levels and is led by committee members Brandon Papineau, Annie Holtz, Cliodhna Hughes, Nina Markl, Anna Asher, Angel Garmpi, James Puchowski, Michael Goessler, and Georges Sakr. LingSoc hosted engaging weekly events in 2019/20 from pub quizzes, film screenings and even a paper discussion on The Language of [Beyoncé's] Lemonade. 

Edinburgh University Linguistics Society   

Student Collaboration Award 

PPLS Formal Committee (Réka Siró, Hannah Carslaw, Angus Forbes-Cable, Finale Li, Monika Zoń, Nathan Zou, Neja Zupan) and the PPLS Intersocietal Council (Thomas Baruzzi, Shivani Khanna, Fiona Melzer, Michelle Miranthi, Brandon Papineau, JJ Ramirez, Sophie Williams, Siena Wotherspoon, Nathan Zou) are shortlisted for working together to develop the School-wide student event End of Year Formal.  

Outstanding Peer Support and Support Group Award 

Brittany Blankinship and Olivia Coombes have also been shortlisted for this award for their work on SolidariTEA coffee mornings for PPLS PhD students. The successful initiative has connected PhD students across Philosophy, Psychology, and Linguistics and English Language departments. 

Outstanding Student Representative Award (winner)

The School has three nominees in this award category, all of whom have been nominated for other Student Awards. They have been recognised for their significant positive impact on the students they represent. 

  • Meyra Çoban 

  • Olivia Coombes 

  • Nathan Zou 

More information  

The winners of the Student Awards 2020 will be announced at 6pm on Monday 13 April.  

Visit EUSA's website for updates and the full list of nominations: 

Student Awards | Edinburgh University Students' Association