In the Spotlight: Jess Read

This month, Jess Read (2009-20) is in the spotlight:  

Tell us about what you do now. Has your time at the School influenced your life today? 

After leaving BMS, I went to UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles), on a rowing scholarship, where I studied Environmental Science and Conservation Biology with a focus on marine systems and ecology. I then spent a year working in New Zealand where I continued to live with my university flatmates in one of their hometowns, before taking the long way home to the UK, through Australia and Europe. I am now a social research interviewer, about to start studying for my masters at the University of Edinburgh in Marine Systems and Policies in September (whoop!).

The opportunity to row at school, and the friends, teammates and coaches who supported me, built me into a capable, hard-working and team-oriented person. This gave me amazing opportunities to row on the Junior National Team and attend UCLA: where I was able to thrive. Having now spent some time in the ‘real world’ I’ve become acutely aware of how strong my academic foundations are, and the access we had to amazing resources through school which enabled my curiosity and joy for learning and exploring the unknown.

Tell us about your time at BMS. Do you have any special memories you would like to share?  

Not an insignificant amount of my time (as with most people who’ve been involved in rowing) was spent with my teammates by the river, in the weight room, or on a rowing machine. The memories of those people and that place will always be significant for me, and I am deeply grateful for the early mornings, late evenings, supportive words and genuine sense of camaraderie.  Having now retired from rowing (as far as I know), I have found myself thinking more about my time in the classroom – not in what I did academically, but in how my friends and teachers were so sincerely kind when things were hard: like when COVID lockdowns meant my year group couldn’t take our A Levels, or when my mock results were not as good as I wanted them to be. The memory of those set-backs are, for me, tinged with kindness and a plan to figure it out.

Who was someone from your time at BMS who had an impact on you and why? 

There are many people who deserve credit for pushing (or pulling) me in a positive direction, but there are a few I want to shout out, without whom I would be in an entirely different position. Richard Smith was the driving force behind my ability to go to UCLA, supporting me administratively, in applications and encouragement – which was no small feat! Christina Webb and Sarah Wright were my A Level History teachers, and taught me as much about thinking critically, being a good person, and how to dust myself off when there are wobbles in life as they did the curriculum: I am indebted to their depth knowledge and ability to create a nurturing environment. I also, of course, have deep gratitude to the rowing coaches and everyone who supported me athletically, as finding them and rowing was a turning point for me.  

What do you do like to do in your spare time? 

A lot of my time at the moment is spent with family and friends that I have been living far away from for a number of years, and preparing to move to Edinburgh this August! I enjoy open water swimming, visiting art galleries and museums, watching documentaries and reading books – especially if they have been read before and handed on to me with a recommendation!

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I would tell my younger self that school will fly past quicker than it might feel in the moment and that it’s ok to make mistakes or change your mind. I would also say that it’s ok to not know what you want to do; just make sure you do something that aligns with your values and passions.

Are there any other thoughts you would like to share with the OBM and BMS community?

It’s taken me a long time to find what I want to do (I changed my major three times at UCLA!), and I’m still not sure that I know exactly what my dream job is. On that journey I’ve found that almost no single decision you make closes a door permanently - though you might have to go the long way round to find it again. If you aren’t sure about what to do, you can make any decision the right one by committing to it and making it into the best possible version of itself.