Class of 2025: Clare Mcvicar

For single mum-of-two Clare Mcvicar, who is graduating with an MA Creative Writing, returning to university was a challenge but encouragement from her family and inspirational lecturers helped her succeed.

Clare, who started writing for pleasure when she was pregnant with her first son, now 13, completed her degree part-time over two years. It was this flexibility that “relieved the stress and physical difficulties” she faced as a mature student juggling family and limited mobility caused by Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

As an “avid reader” from childhood, Clare has always been inspired by stories: “Reading fiction has helped form my world view and love of words,” she said.

After joining a writing group and sharing her work with friends and family she was ready to “write at a more professional level and expand my creative practice.”

Clare, from Colchester, chose Essex mainly for its location, but was impressed by the “eclectic mix of modules” which she says were “interesting and thought provoking… informative, fun, and sociable.”

As a student with physical disabilities, Clare found her timetable challenging, particularly during colder months when she couldn’t attend all lectures and with modules that involved outdoor field trips.

She credits the Student Wellbeing and Inclusivity Service, flexible timetabling, and supportive lecturers who gave her one-to-one support with helping her succeed, while her family gave her the encouragement she needed.

“The children were great at making me push myself and they had a lot of belief in me that made studying a positive experience,” she said.

Clare, who says “Essex is an inclusive dynamic university…that values its students and supports high achievement,” singles out two lecturers for special recognition.

Dr Jordan Savage, Clare’s dissertation mentor, has been” hugely influential and their positivity and interest in my writing has given me confidence to push boundaries and experiment to progress my creative practice,” she said.

“Dr James Canton is also an inspiration. He encouraged me to develop strategies to write authentically about nature whilst being physically excluded from a lot of landscapes due to their natural inaccessibility,” she added.

Clare will start a PhD Creative Writing at Essex next year.