Name: Flora Rowe
Year: 2nd Year
Degree: Maths and Art History
Zodiac Sign: Cancer
Hometown: Chichester/Cornwall, England
Quick Fire Round:
Favourite place in St Andrews: West Sands
Pet Hate: Duvet stealers
Secret talent: Dad dancing
Favourite cheesy quote: Happiness is only real when shared – from In to the Wild
Lizard or Brew Pub: Brew Co with Freddie (her cousin)/Lizard for dancing
Favourite Food: Pesto, but I love all food.
Favourite Song: At the moment, “Drive” by Oh Wonder
Guilty pleasure: Nesting
Flora is effervescent in her enthusiasm and commitment in St Andrews life, throwing herself into a whole set of extra-curricular activities on top of her impressive degree combination of Art History and Maths. Her activities include the Maths society, the sailing club, a radio show, life drawing classes, and involvement with the arts festival, On the Rocks. Luckily, she had time to join me for a chat and a biscuit (or two!) on a sunny afternoon.
St Andrews’ sea-side location is the biggest reason Flora enjoys the university. It’s so important, in fact, that enjoying the view is simply not enough; Flora joins the sailing club in working on the safety boat. She also works as a lifeguard in Cornwall over the summer. Flora assures me that there have been no disasters- apparently the team can actually sail and doesn’t need too much rescuing. However, one occasion did occur when she was called to the rescue, but the safety boat wasn’t working properly. Don’t panic though, everything worked out in end! More than anything, Flora’s commitment to the sailing club is a result of the friendships created over the last year. In fact, she sweetly describes them as a “family that looks after each other.” Awww. Other highlights includes last year’s trip to Turkey over the summer and almost getting a concussion on a night out with the club… good times.
When not on the water, Flora can be found studying her unusual degree of Art History and Maths. Not subjects naturally combined, Flora justifies her case by arguing that “it’s great fun to have a completely different subject to anticipate.” It also means that she has friends from across the academic spectrum! She is adamant about breaking the stereotypes of both subjects, saying, “Students shouldn’t be defined by their subject!” Hence, Flora has a blast as social secretary of the Maths society, which is an important role to encourage interaction between pupils and staff. Conversely, as an accompanyment to Art History, Flora participates in life drawing classes – a therapeutic endeavour that augments an understanding of the complexity and difficulty of art. She arduously strives to make women not look like men!
Music is also an important part of Flora’s life. From singing in Society Singers to playing the ukulele to open mic nights, her enjoyment of music is evident. Flora takes this enjoyment of the arts to the next level, acting as Head of Sponsorship for the arts festival, On the Rocks, as well as broadcasting a radio show, Desert Island Discs. Tune in on Mondays at 7pm to enjoy sweet tunes, and the stories and memories behind them!
Flora’s insanely creative and artsy lifestyle and personality is evident in her future dreams and aspirations. She either wants to find a sustainable way of building favelas or to grow vegetables by the sea. Although, any excuse to travel would do since she has a massive bucket list of potential travel destinations. Her favourite travel adventure to date was a week-long trip to climb Mount Kilimanjaro where she had a blast meeting many amazing people, including a couple who had no baggage just instruments and were singing Bob Marley. Her motto: Never stop changing and saving lives!