The winner of 2020’s BTEC Business & Enterprise Learner of the Year, and winner of the overall Adult Learner of the Year award, is a real inspiration, showing how with hard work and determination anything is possible. Marium Shafique, who this year finishes her BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Business at Nelson and Colne College with a triple Distinction, arrived in the UK from Italy in 2015 with limited spoken and next to no written English. Her journey from there to the offer of a place at Lancashire University Business School has been meteoric, testament to her intelligence, passion and willingness to put in the graft. Her nominator, Mr Will Cook, PR Officer at the College says: “Marium is an exceptional talent, devoted to knowledge and skills development.” 

In fact, ‘devoted’ seems to be a very apt description of Marium’s pursuit of learning. Not only did she devote herself to rapidly achieving her ESOL, GCSE and Level 1 qualifications in English, she also devoted herself to decisively pursuing her ambitions. “Marium proactively pleaded with the college to skip BTEC Business at Level 2, to progress faster,” explains Will Cook. “Given her chance, she has excelled at Level 3, achieving distinction grades in every unit of study. Particular highlights include proactively leading successful group projects on the ethics of H&M’s supply chain, where Marium delivered detailed analysis articulately, and a thoroughly researched project on government market regulation and high relative poverty, focusing especially on free school meals.”  

Marium also offers a great example of how working alongside study so often proves to be mutually beneficial to both employer and coursework. “Working long hours at Boohoo and Boundary Mill Stores not only helps to support her family income, but also to develop her learning of real-world business. She is then able to apply her shop floor experience to classroom theory to produce brilliant assignments,” says Will Cook. “In class, she shares her experience of customer service through her job, and where she has put theory into practice, to enhance the group’s knowledge.” Jenny Gibbons, Concession Manager at Boundary Mill, says: “Marium is helpful, polite and has a wonderful aura. I’ll never forget when she drew up her own store plan to memorise where each brand concession was located so she could help customers across the store. That proactivity is just Marium.” 

Business tutor Keren Morley also talks about how Marium’s personal qualities stand out from the crowd: “Marium is charismatic, confident, and has remarkable interpersonal skills. She stands out for her independence, professionalism, leadership and maturity. She’s even a sharpshooter outside class, taking up archery as an extracurricular activity. She’s an exemplary student, unlike any other I’ve taught.” 

As peer representative, Marium is praised for bringing a natural leader who brings professionalism and diplomacy to her role, while her classmates also tend to gravitate towards her for support. Classmate Emily Yazdani praises Marium’s fantastic attitude to learning. “She’s never scared to ask questions and is never disheartened when her answer is wrong. She only grows stronger through knowledge.” This drive and thirst for knowledge, and the willingness to make mistakes in the quest for self-improvement was another aspect of Marium’s nomination that really stood out to the judges. 

“Helping my father out on my family’s jewellery stall was where my love for enterprise started,” explains Maium. “I’ve always loved the idea of studying business because it has so many areas and it can lead to a wide range of careers. A visit to Morrisons’ Distribution Centre in Wakefield with college really set off my imagination. The next time I was in Morrisons with my mum, I started telling her about how the company keeps its products and operates a just-in-time delivery model. She wasn’t listening, but I was passionate, and enjoyed telling someone else about what I learned. My first job at Boohoo gave me valuable insight into how a successful international retail business processes orders and distributes globally.  

All of these experiences have only added to my enthusiasm for studying Business, and I’ve loved everything about my BTEC. I have learned about Accounting and Finance, Marketing, Law, Human Resources and Economics. Also learning business language has developed my wider English skills. Originally, I was considering Law, but my BTEC has reshaped my career focus and I’m now pursuing a career in the banking and finance sector. I have an ambition to reach a strategic managerial position and go as high as I can.”