Meet our Student Woman of the Year winner

Our Student Woman of the Year competition is all about celebrating tomorrow’s leaders today. We shine the spotlight on our incredible and diverse community of student women.

Each year, our winner bags a £10k grant and the opportunity to become a UNiDAYS Brand Ambassador. We also award a £1k cash prize to each of the two runners-up.

We’re excited to announce that our 2024 winner is Salome Tirado! Hear what she has to say about the win below…

First of all, congratulations! Please tell us about yourself

My name is Salome and I am a 21-year-old Black woman from Horsham, West Sussex. My dad is Spanish and my mum is Nigerian, but I was born in Ireland. I am a 4th year PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Apprentice studying Computer Science at the University of Leeds.

Growing up in Sussex meant that I became used to being bullied due to being different. However, it never really affected me. As a minority, I thrive in spaces where I am different, as it allows me to bring unique perspectives. I’m already a recognised speaker and voice for many young people who see me as a role model and attend conferences I speak at or have seen my campaigns in schools. I want to continue to be that representation and give insight into the lives of people like me.

From a young age, my passion for media and entertainment has unconsciously manifested in all I do. I started by editing funny videos of my life for social media. What started as a joke became something people looked forward to watching daily. Then, I bought a camera, and in 10 days I produced my first YouTube video where I interviewed 100 Black people on their name pronunciation/meaning.

Funnily enough, during my year placement at PwC, I gained the title of “the social media superstar”. Everyone wondered how I had gone from doing our day job of assigned coding tasks to assisting senior leadership in producing podcasts, short films and social media videos. Everything I’ve done (consciously/unconsciously), circles back to my dream of working in entertainment and this award is just further confirmation.

How do you feel about winning our Student Woman of the Year competition?

This is a complete pinch-me moment! I was apprehensive about even applying. Now, I can’t believe I won! The title in itself “Student Woman of the Year” is just amazing and just makes me feel so accomplished.

Tones is something I started by myself and although I believed in the idea, I felt that it's not something I would get recognition for. As someone known for being a computer science ambassador, I felt it was something completely different that people wouldn’t understand or expect from me. I am so grateful to UNiDAYS for not just selecting me but also for creating this initiative to highlight the amazing things young women are doing.

Please can you talk to us about your initiative "Tones", and how the prize will help?

Tones is a YouTube series that features the stories of young people. A lot of times we hear “Gen Z are lazy”, “Gen Z have it easy”, and “Gen Z are all influencers that don’t want to work”. I wanted to take control of our narrative by creating a space that amplifies the real voices of Gen Z. In doing so, I want to help everyone connect with the generation that is: reshaping the world of work, challenging societal norms and following their passions.

Although we are all achieving many things, sometimes we feel like the only way we’ll be heard is once we’re famous and make it to the red carpet events. I think otherwise. Tones aims to highlight the voices of those who also deserve to be heard… even if in the world’s eyes, they haven’t “made it” yet.

Tones also aims to create a community by organising events that seek to highlight talent and show recognition. As Gen Z, we see influencers and celebrities attending these amazing events all the time on social media and sometimes it is almost like we are living through their experiences. Whilst it's fun to aspire to this, in the meantime, Tones aims to create its own talent shows, competitions and events for young people so we too can start accessing exciting spaces. The prize money will help fund future episodes of Tones and also help create the first Tones Live event: a talent showcase featuring the performances and stories of young people.

Please can you tell us about your degree and how your experience has been?

Computer science has helped me improve my ability to think and problem-solve. I would say that this in combination with my creativity allows me to generate and achieve seemingly unachievable ideas. I aim to challenge norms with new perspectives as I love responding to “impossible” ideas with “why not?”

Also, as a PwC Apprentice, my degree has allowed me to get a taste of the corporate world. I have been able to access so many spaces and opportunities with big organisations. Aside from the day job, the firm encourages us to go beyond for the community. Here I found my love for public speaking as I became a Black woman in Tech Ambassador and was able to travel the UK, encouraging others to be the same. I got to speak on podcasts and live streams. And, I still can’t believe that after pitching a series of video ideas to Kevin Ellis, Chair of PwC UK, I was given the opportunity to carry them out.

How do you balance your academic demands with your other passions and projects?

There is a time for everything and I think of everything as seasons. During intense term times, my focus is mainly on university. However, I am not studying all day every day as I would burn myself out and be bored.

I really value consistency and the only way to maintain consistency is to keep going. You can’t keep going if what you’re doing is not sustainable or enjoyable. So, in the other half of the day, I like to do my passions, see friends and travel. My friends and I have a slogan: “it's all about the balance”. I have never been one to believe in “grind/hustle culture”. Achieving goals is important but the journey to achieving them is equally as important.

How will the Student Woman of the Year prize impact your goals and aspirations for the future?

Starting a venture on your own can be tough because being self-motivated can be hard. No one is setting your goals, expectations or deadlines, you’re doing it all yourself. There were times when things went wrong and I really wanted to give up.

Now, I will always remember this prize as the time in my life when I realised my dream was possible… the time when others saw the vision too and believed in me. This is only the start. It has only been 5 months and Tones has exceeded my expectations, I can’t wait to see how it will grow as a result of this prize.

My primary goal is to be a recognised voice for Gen Z. Not only that, I want to be someone who encourages as many young people as possible to follow the dreams in their hearts.

I love social media, but sometimes I think what was created to connect us can sometimes make us feel more lonely. Another one of my goals is to create social places aside from clubbing, where young people can come, socialise and be themselves. I believe we grow into the best versions of ourselves when we are surrounded by the right people, and I want to help everyone access community.

What advice would you give to a student applying for our Student Woman of the Year competition next year?

I’m going to keep it simple. Do it, you have absolutely nothing to lose. You’re doing amazing things and the world needs to see it so take the first step.

How can people follow your journey?

You can watch Tones on YouTube or follow along on social media:

Instagram

@tonesbysalome/@salome.tirado

TikTok

@tonesbysalome/@salome

LinkedIn

@salometirado

Learn more about our Student Woman of the Year competition

Find out more about our Student Woman of the Year competition and discover the amazing runners-up here.