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Jemima Letts

Forestry (BSc), 2019 
Assistant Forester at Chatsworth Estate

Why did you decide to study at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ?
When I came to Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ on an Open Day, I immediately fell in love with the campus and location. This is the main reason I chose to study at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ and not another university offering a forestry course. Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ has run a forestry degree programme for a long time and the amount of research carried out at the University meant that I was learning from people at the frontline of new and emerging fields of forestry research. Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ itself is a brilliant location, with amazing transport links and close to Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park. The forestry course had the option of adding a sandwich placement year, meaning I was able to take a year away from studying to put what I was learning into a practical context.

Why did you choose your specific course?
I ended up studying forestry by mistake! When I came to finishing my time at school, I knew that I wanted a job which involved working outside and I had a real interest in managing natural environments. After doing some research into broader countryside management courses, I came across the forestry degree at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ on UCAS by fluke. I decided to go along to an open day and immediately became interested in forestry - the idea of spending four years living away from home in Wales, learning all about trees, sounded incredible to me and I applied to Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ for both its forestry and conservation with forestry degrees. After being accepted to study forestry, I soon found out there’s a lot more to trees and woodland management than people realise!

What did you enjoy most about your time at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ?
There were so many things which stand out from my time studying at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ. As part of my course, we went on a huge number of field trips, both locally around North Wales, and further afield, and it was a great experience to meet foresters in the real world and learn about the challenges they were facing and what their jobs entailed. 

The extracurricular activities on offer at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ were so diverse - I was able to take up climbing as part of Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ's Climbing Society and also got involved with the University’s Botanical Gardens at Treborth. During my second year, I became a peer guide to help welcome new forestry students and really enjoyed my time helping people getting settled in and spending time with peer guides from other subject areas. The people I met on my course are people I still keep in touch with now. Forestry is such a close-knit profession that I come across people who studied at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ all over the place, including my boss!

How did Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ help you on the road to the job/career you're doing now?
Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ supported me to achieve my Undergraduate degree in forestry which enabled me to apply for graduate management positions within the forestry profession. The reputation that the forestry degree at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ has also helps a lot! The support I received during my studies could not be faulted and I doubt I would have achieved such a good mark in my degree without it. During my time studying, I suffered from quite serious health problems, but the support of my lecturers and support staff from across the University enabled me to continue with my degree and made changes to allow me to graduate! 

I also started my own business whilst still studying, and the Employability and B-Enterprising teams at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ gave me immense support and encouragement - something which I would have been lost without!

What does your current role involve?
I am currently the Assistant Forester on the Chatsworth Estate in Derbyshire. I work as part of the Forestry and Arboriculture team to manage the nearly 4,000 acres of woodland on the Estate. We run an annual programme of forestry felling operations, harvesting around 7,000 tonnes of timber each year with our in-house harvesting business. We plant around 90,000 trees each year on average, to restock felled areas, and over the last 10 years have also created 96 hectares of new woodland. I am responsible for the management of the Estate's firewood business, producing and delivering firewood to tenants, local residents and businesses throughout the year. My role also involves lots of outreach work, creating resources to explain forestry to visitors, residents and local groups. I am really passionate about mapping technology and GIS, and this is something I do a lot of as part of job, completing forest survey and mensuration work, mapping my results to create accurate forestry data.

What would you say to somebody considering studying at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ?
I would say ‘go for it’! Studying at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ was a fantastic experience and something I would highly recommend to anyone considering it. The academic facilities and teaching is brilliant, especially in Forestry and Natural Sciences. The location is spectacular and the variation of clubs and societies to get involved with is immense! The support networks present mean that if anything goes wrong, there is always someone to help, and the friends I have made at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÒÅÆ×ÊÁÏ are friends for life.