UCC Celebrates 36 Quercus College Scholarship Recipients

18 Oct 2023

The Quercus College Scholarships acknowledge the academic achievement of students who have achieved top marks in the CoMH examinations of Summer 2023.

This Scholarship acknowledges academic excellence in a public way and represents a significant academic achievement.

Each year Quercus nurtures a handful of minds, believed to have the potential to grow beyond all expectation. This is a cause for acknowledgement and a great celebration for the students, their friends and their family. Students from as far away as Canada and the Philippines received the scholarship demonstrating the international reach of the College of Medicine and Health, UCC.

Professor Helen Whelton congratulated all 36 recipients across the entire College:

“Success requires a diverse skillset, meaning that those who come out on top must truly be all-rounders. This entails not only being able to learn and critically appraise material presented to you, but also being a valuable team member, a competent leader and a willing follower, depending on the situation at hand. You have all displayed these abilities in abundance. My advice to each of you is to celebrate your academic achievement, continue to make time to join and enjoy clubs and societies, immerse yourself in student life, in university life. Teamwork and working together is so important in the healthcare sector, good communication skills, empathy are skills that will bring you a long way”.

Professor Brendan Griffin, Head of School of Pharmacy UCC said: “We are celebrating some remarkable talent amongst our students, great to see our university recognises and celebrates exceptional students when they join, as well as those who develop their talents while studying here, I would like to congratulate Olga our third year pharmacy student on becoming Quercus University Scholar for the College of Medicine and Health and the 36 Quercus College Scholarship recipients from the College of Medicine and Health and commend you all on this remarkable academic achievement.”

Olga Andriyashchenko, pictured here with her mother, is a third year pharmacy student in the School of Pharmacy, UCC was congratulated and formally announced Quercus University Scholar for the College of Medicine and Health. Olga was a recipient of a UCC Quercus College Scholarship in 2022 and 2023. Olga was born in Louth, raised in Cork, and attended Carrigaline Community School where she says her true love of learning began. Prof Whelton said Olga “is undoubtedly a true scholar. We are delighted Olga decided to pursue her dream of studying pharmacy at UCC after her parents moved to Ireland from Ukraine in 2001”.

Olga Andriyashchenko said: “Being a part of the Quercus family is one of my proudest achievements to date and has inspired me to continue reaching my potential with the ultimate aim of providing patients with the care they deserve”.

After three years of studying pharmacy Olga said she has learned “pharmacy is such a diverse course can offer an incredibly extensive range of opportunities for patient care, scientific research and innovation. You will find a pharmacist in a clinical setting such as a community or hospital pharmacy but also in a research lab, a pharmaceutical industry or a regulatory authority, all working together in collaboration with patients to improve their quality of life”.