AN OKEHAMPTON College student is off to sample life on campus in the US this summer after securing a place on a prestigious educational programme.

Year 12 student Philippa Scammell, from Hatherleigh, has won a place on the Sutton Trust US Programme, which is run in partnership with the US-UK Fulbright Commission. 

Entry to the programme is highly competitive and Philippa was chosen from 1,000 of the UK’s brightest students to be one of the 150 scholars flying out to the States this summer.

The Sutton Trust US Programme allows academically talented low and middle income British students to explore what it would be like to study at a top US university. 

It offers 150 students a week-long visit to the US each year, visiting different campuses and giving the students a flavour of life stateside. 

Philippa said: ‘I am beyond privileged to have been selected as a scholar within such a prestigious programme. The environment is both welcoming and educational, not to mention exciting too!

‘In the summer I will be staying at Yale University, attending a college fair at Harvard and visiting multiple universities and colleges, all of which make the process more realistic. I would like to thank the Sutton Trust and the US-UK Fulbright Commission for making this opportunity possible!’

Neil Sproats, post-16 leader at Okehampton College, said: ‘We are all delighted that Pip has been selected for this programme and are incredibly proud of her as she has worked so very hard to make this happen. She is such an all-round talented student but stays so modest.

‘I would also like to thank the college staff, in particular Jo Searle, who have supported Pip going through the process. I am sure it will be an amazing opportunity and we know Pip will go on to great things in the future.’

At the end of the summer, students on the programme will choose if they would like to continue to make applications to US universities alongside their UK applications.