Seven questions with Sam Lax

This week we put seven questions to Sam Lax, an Arts and Sciences BASc student who is due to graduate next year.

Why are you interested in this subject and what do you plan to do in the future?

That's the beauty of the BASc course, it's not just one subject. I didn't have a clue what university course I wanted to do when I was at school. I was too busy playing with the worms in the garden to be dreaming about grandiose career and promotion paths that could be traced back to the choice I should make for higher education.

Doing conventional A-Levels I had little exposure to the breadth of future career options that were outside the remit of the hard sciences I was studying. Two years of studying various strands of engineering at other universities made me realise that the hard sciences wasn't quite my scene.

That's when one of my hundreds of Google searches of 'I don't know what career I want!' 'Is university for me?' brought up the newly established BASc and the rest is history (which I could study modules in if I wanted).

Having this interdisciplinary approach to learning has allowed me to return to learning for learning's sake, rather than learning 'to the test' (for the most part anyway). In doing so, I have kept the elements of engineering most interesting to me, it has also allowed me to pick up Spanish and helped me to uncover documentary filmmaking.

Documentary filmmaking is something that I'd never have even dreamt about during my old courses. Now having whet my appetite for it, I think I want to pursue it as a career alongside other creative and powerful mediums like travel photography and radio. Thanks BASc!

What is the most interesting thing you've done, seen or got involved with while at UCL?

Making a short documentary about how my grandparents met on a slow boat out to Africa.

The module gave me the opportunity to learn lots of new practical skills, while the project gave me an excuse to visit and really get to know my grandparents more, both of which were thoroughly enjoyable.

The end result was shortlisted for OpenCityDocs film festival which was a nice plus.

Have you discovered any hidden gems during your time at UCL?

The sofas in Senate House are class.

Give us your top three things to do/see/go to in London:

1. Soultrain at Bussey building is a must if you like your soul funk disco and of course sweat.
2. Maloko is a cool little café/restaurant that I frequent in Camberwell. Serves up delicious and nutritious crepes to suit all needs but meat eaters, that is.
3. See your friends…Aww.

If you were Provost for the day what one thing would you do?

Recreate Bellogate.

Who inspires you and why?

My mum. I know, what am I like? She's an amazing woman, who's been through a lot, still works bloody hard, never complains and has such an infectious passion and enthusiasm for life!

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I can't touch my left shoulder with the same hand, nor my right. Doctors say it could be linked to my enormous IQ but I'm skeptickle.