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She is one of the hundreds of students graduating from Â鶹ƵµÀ Leicester (DMU) this January but Jena Mannion will barely have time to celebrate. 

That’s because the 23-year-old was set to start her first day as a professional marketer the very next day. 

Jena, who has now completed her Media and Communications degree, was at Curve Theatre with her mum, stepdad and uncle to mark the end of four years study with DMU. 

She joined hundreds of other graduates on the first day of the university’s winter graduation ceremonies. 

Speaking in Curve Theatre, Jena, from Worcester, said securing a job in marketing at the Halfords head office had relieved some pressure. 

She said: “While I am nervous about tomorrow, overall, getting the job has made the past couple of weeks a lot less stressful and I’ve been able to really enjoy today.” 

Having started DMU in 2019, Jena was one of the the many students whose university experience was redefined when the Covid 19 pandemic broke out in 2020. 

She said: “It was hard because I had made some new friends and we had to basically split up and try to keep in contact from our houses. 

“Also, one of the things which really attracted me to DMU in the first place was the possibility of an international trip through DMU Global and suddenly that looked really unlikely.” 

As the world began to open up again in 2021, Jena was among the first to apply for new DMU Global places and eventually won a spot on a year-long placement studying out in Prague, at Charles University. 

She said: “I was able to study social sciences out there and it was a great experience, it was when the world was opening up and so I had the kind of experience I’d started to have at DMU in 2019. 

“Overall, I’m feel quite proud of myself for finishing my degree and getting a job in the career I want.” 

The graduation ceremonies run until Friday 26 January and among the other celebrating graduands was Dami Osinaike, from Nigeria. 

The 29-year-old has completed an Engineering Management MSc and said had enjoyed discovering Leicester. 

He said: “I decided to come to DMU because my sister lived in Leicester but when I got here, she moved! So, I had to find somewhere. 

“Leicester is smaller than London or Manchester but feels safer and really has all that you’d need. I have loved joining the library and I always read the heritage signs telling you about the history of the city. 

“This is a great day for me and the whole celebration has been wonderful. One of the things which really made the course at DMU so rewarding was the attention we got from tutors. 

“There was much more interaction and we were free to ask questions and discuss things at great length. I was always learning while I was here.”