Name: Ellen Vinke
Position: Editor
Age: 21
Degree: 4th year English with Creative Writing student
HC history: 3rd year as a member, 2nd in the committee
I met up with Ellen over some iced coffees to talk about all things this past summer and the new year for HCAU. Here are the best bits from that!
HC: Heyy! So first things first, how was the summer? Did you do anything fun?
EV: I had a great summer! I was at home with my parents in Germany so I met up with my best friends a lot and went swimming nearly every day!
HC: That sounds like a dream! Are you excited for the academic and HC year?
EV: Yeah, I am! This is my last year (unless I do my Masters lol) and academically I’m most looking forward to getting to do more Creative Writing courses. I always look forward to HC stuff, even writing articles is so fun! But I think we have so many amazing events planned too that it’s going to be one of the best years yet. At the moment I’m most looking forward to our movie night in!
HC: Are you planning on doing anything differently? And as a 4th-year student, do you have any tips you’d like to share for surviving uni life?
EV: Oh god, I make resolutions every year. I definitely want to stay on top of all my reading and get my assignments done early. I think the most important part of surviving uni is to remember that while doing your work and getting good grades is important, the social part is really important too! Join a society, do pub crawls, make friends on your courses – you’ll need the people you meet there to get through the next few years!
Ellen’s cats Freddie and Tennessee
HC: Speaking of 4th year, do you have any plans for after getting your degree?
EV: At the moment I’m looking to do my Masters, ideally here in Aberdeen! The best part of that (apart from not having to leave my friends and lovely flatmate) is that I’d get to stay on as a member of HCAU for another year!
HC: And finally, what would the ideal future for Ellen Vinke look like?
EV: I’d love to make my money writing – either novels or maybe scripts for TV and film – and live in a lovely flat (maybe like the one Bridget Jones has?) with a couple of cats and a dog!
Quick fires!
HC: Friends or How I met your mother?
EV: I’m going to be that person and say neither, I’d much rather watch Schitt’s Creek!
HC: A wax melt or a diffuser?
EV: Definitely diffuser! I love the Yankee Candle Pink Sands one!
HC: Cocktails or wine?
EV: Oh, cocktails for sure!
HC: Ice cream or cake?
EV: Can I have ice cream on top of my cake?
HC: Super busy city centre or in the middle of nowhere?
EV: I think at the moment probably city centre!
HC: Would you rather only wear HC merch for the rest of your life or never eat anything sweet again?
EV: Ahhh this is hard because HC merch is so cute, but I don’t think I could commit to only wearing that for the rest of my life!