GO HIGHER: TALKING HEADS

Name: Kate Peacock

Age: 20

A-levels: Bs in geography and general studies, C in maths, D in English

Course: Environmental management at Leeds University. Has completed two years of her course.

Why she chose it: It interested her more than straight geography

What's in it: Economics, geography, science and law. It looks at the policies that industries and governments should pursue to protect the world's environment.

"I was at school in Derbyshire and I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do career-wise. My favourite subject was geography and I realised there were all these courses at university that people didn't know about. So I applied for environmental management at Leeds, York and Lancaster, environmental sciences at East Anglia, and geography at Durham and Exeter. I favoured Leeds because I liked the idea of being in a city. Also I met people who had graduated from Leeds and liked it.

"My first year was not as happy as my second, as everyone had to get up to standard. But in the second you could choose your modules.

"I'd recommend that first-year students go into hall because that way you meet people."