Events students raise over £15k and scoop national prize

Final year Event Management students worked with charity clients to design and deliver four separate fundraising events across March and April with one group raising as much as £8,000 for their chosen organisation.

To top off their experience as they work through their final semester, the cohort also recently won at the national E Awards in Edinburgh for their work on last year’s Aberdeen Student Festival. It had raised over £3,000 for Aberdeen Cyrenians and was commended for having wider social, cultural, economic and environmental impacts for the local community.

Third stage students who ran the same festival this year successfully supported regional independent filmhouse Belmont Community Cinema, raising hundreds as they hosted a one-off weekend wellness event at OGV Taproom in the heart of Aberdeen’s city centre.

One stage four group supported Erskine, Scotland's largest veterans’ charity, by organising a spring pop-up market at The Barn at Barra Castle for local food producers and craft makers to sell their goods. ‘A Fine Fair’ went on to smash all targets and raised over £8,000.

Michael Parkes, Fundraising and Development Manager, Erskine said: "A huge thank you to Event Makers Co. for their incredible achievements at ‘A Fine Fair’.  To raise £8,250, with over 600 visitors on the day is just phenomenal. The team exceeded all expectations and should be so proud of their work. They have been a credit to themselves, RGU and Erskine Veterans Charity from day one.

“All funds raised will go towards the new Erskine Veterans Activity Centre (EVAC) North in Forres, which we plan to open in 2024. The centre aims to: meet a huge unmet need for Veterans in the area, enhance their quality of life and wellbeing, provide the opportunity to engage with people who have shared experiences and history, learn new skills, explore a number of interests and access support services.

“With news of EVAC North, and the upcoming 80th anniversary of D-Day in June, the fantastic support from RGU event students comes at a very poignant time for Erskine."

All of the students involved in their respective projects met the needs and expectations of their clients, mirroring industry practice and providing vital experience that will go towards obtaining graduate jobs as they thrive to continue contributing towards the city’s hospitality and events sector.

Dr Rachael Ironside, Associate Professor and Course Leader at RGU, said: "In their final two years of study, our students are tasked with putting their learning into practice by working with real clients and real briefs to host fundraising events in Aberdeen City and Shire.

“We are immensely proud of our students and their achievements this year. Not only have they raised an incredible amount of money for their beneficiaries, students have also supported a wide variety of venues, suppliers, performers and creative practitioners.

“It is a privilege to work with our students to contribute to the local creative and cultural landscape while also seeing them grow and develop into future leaders in the event profession."

Maryam Shahid, a current Stage 4 student, added: “We are so delighted to have won Best Student Event/Festival for the 2023 Aberdeen Student Festival. It was an honour to support the fantastic work of the Aberdeen Cyrenians by delivering four creative events. A big thank you to our lecturers Katie, Kirstin and Rachael at the School of Creative and Cultural Business, we couldn’t have done it without you!”

RGU’s BA (Hons) Events Management is a four-year degree that’s been highly acclaimed in recent student rankings. Learn about this and more at the University’s final Discovery Day of the year on May 11.