Tom Chigbo voted in as new CUSU president

Tom is in his third year studying geography at St John’s College. Since arriving at Cambridge he has been active in student politics and has contributed to many of the access events organised to encourage more applicants from groups under-represented at the university.

As CUSU president he’s determined to increase student awareness and involvement in the government of the university, and wants to create closer links with college JCRs (junior common rooms). He’s also keen to support and develop schemes aiming to boost the number of state school applicants – especially from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Brought up in Camden, north London, Tom went to St Joseph’s RC Primary School in Highgate. As an outstanding pupil, he was encouraged to apply for a place at the London Oratory School by one of his teachers. “I was quite impressed by the open day so I applied and got a place,” he says.

At the Oratory Tom flourished academically, socially and on the sports field. He is especially grateful to his geography teacher for inspiring him to think about studying the subject at university. “Teachers at both my schools were tremendously supportive – they opened doors for me,” he says.

Tom’s family are Nigerian and his parents came to the UK to study at university. His father, who died when Tom was 11, was a journalist, broadcaster and politician in Nigeria. His mother worked as a freelance journalist.

“My family are Igbo, a people who put great emphasis on education. There was always an expectation that I would work hard and go to university. But the encouragement to apply to Cambridge specifically, came from teachers at the Oratory who taught me well and gave me the confidence to aim high,” he says.

“I remember one of the teachers telling us that there was going to be a meeting for potential Oxbridge candidates – she looked at me and said “You’re going to be there, Tom”.”

Tom describes his family background as financially modest. “My family live in a council flat - and it was a real worry that I might not fit in at Cambridge, which I thought might be full of people who were privately educated or from a higher social class,” he says.

“But once you’re here, you quickly find that most Cambridge students come from state schools and you also begin to really value the diversity that Cambridge has. One or two people I’m friends with come from top public schools – they’re as down-to-earth as everyone else.

“Cambridge students come from all over the world as well as from all over the UK – which makes for an exciting mix of cultures and backgrounds.”

Already a keen footballer, Tom took up lacrosse in his first term at St John’s and now plays in the Cambridge University men’s lacrosse team. “It’s a sport originally played by North American tribes who used it as a surrogate for war. In the UK it’s traditionally been played by all-girls schools. The men’s game is faster and fiercer,” he says.

Tom’s post as CUSU president is for one year. He’s mulling over what to do after that. “Maybe politics, maybe working for a charity, definitely something to help people,” he says. Meanwhile he is concentrating on revision for his finals and completing his dissertation.