Meet Leigh Averill!
Major: Third-Year Communications Student
Hometown: White Rock
Hobbies: Soccer, Photography, and Blogging
Instagram: @itsavioletworld
Blog: itsavioletworld.com
This week, I am interviewing Leigh Averill, who is a Chapter Writer at Her Campus SFU.
Leigh is a well-rounded SFU student who takes pride in everything she does. Her constant drive and overall determination is what many recognize her for. The bi-lingual, health enthusiast, blogger and restaurant manager is more than ready to see what more adventures she can take on this upcoming year.
Intrigued to find out more about Leigh? Scroll down and you will not be disappointed!
As many would be curious to know, what was the determining factor that influenced you to transfer from UBC to SFU after your first year?
In my first year at UBC I was studying in a program that I wasn’t passionate about and it eventually made me lose all motivation for my schoolwork. The moment I found out about SFU’s Communications program, I knew I had to apply to transfer – it’s so up my alley and I have completely regained the passion and motivation for my studies!
I hear you wrote for Her Campus UBC. Are there any differences between the two?
Although both are equally awesome, I like how SFU’s Her Campus chapter has a lot of freedom for creativity. Nearly every week we get to pick a topic to write a piece on. UBC’s Her Campus is a little more structured with more specific sections that they need filled every week.
You told me you are a supporter of “healthy living”. How do you stay so motivated?
Ever since I found out that I have an intolerance for gluten about 8 months ago, I have completely changed my diet. Normally it can be a bit of a challenge to stick to a healthy diet, but I did copious amount of research on gluten free blogs and found out that eating healthy can still be super yummy! The main factor that keeps me motivated to continue my healthy lifestyle is simply how amazing I feel day to day as a result of eating clean and exercising.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I play in a rec soccer league once a week which is an awesome de-stresser! Apart from that, I really enjoy blogging because it is the perfect way to fuse my passion for photography and writing together in one place. Recently, I have been loving looking up new recipes online and trying them out so you could definitely say that cooking is becoming a new hobby of mine as well.
How do you balance being a restaurant manager, writing for Her Campus AND being a full-time student? Teach us your ways!
I have always had a job since the 10th grade, so working and studying is something that I am totally used to balancing at this point. Being in the restaurant industry, I work nights mostly, so it is easy to balance daytime classes with a couple of night shifts per week. As far as my involvement with Her Campus, it is something that I truly enjoy doing so it doesn’t feel like any extra thing that I have to squeeze into my schedule; I gladly spend my free time participating and writing for the organization!
From what you’ve told me, it is almost clear that you’ll be graduated next year! What do you plan on doing with your Communications degree?
I am super excited and hopeful to be finishing up next spring! I first plan to do some traveling to take a bit of a breather. Then, since a Communications degree has such a broad span of possibilities, I am not entirely sure where it will take me just yet. I will hopefully be looking for opportunities within the realm of public relations, marketing, and social media.
Photo provided by the interviewee