Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Aukje's graduation is poetry in motion
She will graduate this week from her BA English with Creative Writing course and will receive extra recognition as the joint winner of the Matthew Caygill Memorial Award for her outstanding work during her time on her course.
An international student from The Netherlands, she came to LBU to study far from home, and had to adapt to a new culture, language, and customs.
Aukje, an English with Creative Writing student, wrote her third-year dissertation on the translation of feminist Dutch poetry, in a first step to a major contribution to the field. She looks to bring the work of talented but unnoticed Dutch poets to a global audience.
Dr Nasser Hussain from the School of Cultural Studies & Humanities explained: “I struggle to think of a student who has produced better work, so consistently, and with such vision and purpose. Equipped as she is, with both a creative and critical mind.”
Aukje is a part of a duo who are actively publishing their own magazine, Maelstrom, which focuses on discussing social sciences through poetry, art, essays and more. She has published her classmates’ work as well as that of people internationally.
In addition to her numerous achievements, Aukje has been a prominent member of the first ever LBU UniSlam team. Hand-picked during her second year, she and a team of other students competed nationally with other university poetry teams, making it to the quarter finals.
Dr Hussain described her as: “A real standout – her own work was always to an exceptional standard, but more importantly, she helped her teammates become better writers and performers.”
“Despite being far from home, she has reached out, made lasting friends, colleagues in poetry, and is actively contributing to the field – and is doing so locally, nationally, and internationally.”
Following graduation, Aukje is preparing to embark on her MA and continue her explorations at graduate level.