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15/12/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Brouhaha, n. a noisy and overexcited reaction or response to something. e.g. "A brouhaha erupted over her statements about the president"    

08/12/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon:  Preternatural, adj. a formal adjective used to describe things that are very unusual in a way that does not seem natural. e.g. "He has a preternatural knack for imitating birdcalls"    

03/12/25

After seeing how successful our One Jamaica One Love Relief Drive was last week our students decided to leave the drive open for an extra day. Amazing work from our student body.

01/12/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Asinine, adj. 1. extremely stupid or foolish.    

27/11/25

Hats off to all the Year 13 students who performed their devised pieces for their A-Level Drama assessments last week. Congratulations to you all 🎊🎊

25/11/25

So proud of our amazing student body who came together for Our One Day Jamaica Relief Drive on Friday 🇯🇲 Thank you to the staff and students who worked to make it possible - your generosity has had a real impact.

25/11/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Jejune, adj. 1. naive, simplistic, and superficial; "their entirely predictable and usually jejune opinions". 2. (of ideas or writings) dry and uninteresting.    

13/11/25

It was great to hear from another of our alumni this week as we spoke to Zaya, she's doing amazingly at a degree apprenticeship. If you'd like to read more about Zaya's experience at HCL6F and her time since click the link below! harrisclaphamsixthform.org.u…

10/11/25

A final reminder about our Open Evening tomorrow on Tuesday - we look forward to meeting you all!

10/11/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Gibbous, adj. most often used to describe the moon or a planet when it is seen with more than half, but not all of the apparent disk illuminated.    

03/11/25

8 days until our Open Evening on Tuesday 11 November. Book your place today! pic.twitter.com/N5R9h9wNza

22/10/25

Last week some of our students took part in the Senior Mathematical Challenge, a competition run by UKMT. It's always great to see our students aiming high and celebrating their knowledge. So proud of everyone that competed!      

20/10/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Obviate, v. to obviate something (usually a need for something, or a necessity) is to anticipate and prevent it    

15/10/25

Open Evening 2025, Tuesday 11th November, 16:30-19:00. More information in the picture. We look forward to seeing you!#HCL6F pic.twitter.com/2OLbexAoEt

13/10/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Mollify, v. appease the anger or anxiety of (someone). e.g. "nature reserves were set up around the power stations to mollify the local conservationists"#HCL6F

08/10/25

We're so excited that our Cultural Perspectives classes started last week, it's always great to see our students exploring something meaningful beyond the curriculum. This term students options include alchemy, Greek myths, healthy relationships, surrealism, and more.

06/10/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon:  Debunk, v. expose the falseness or hollowness of (an idea or belief    

29/09/25

This week in Mr Leprêtre's Lexicon: Sinuous, adj. having many curves and turns. "the river follows a sinuous trail through the dale".    

26/09/25

We've had the great privilege to speak to another of our alumni recently, click below to read about how Zaya is doing at her Bloomberg degree apprenticeship. harrisclaphamsixthform.org.u…    

22/09/25

This week in Mr Lepretres Lexicon: Cynicism, n. an inclination to believe that people are motivated purely by self-interest; scepticism

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What We've Been Up To

Posted on September 23rd 2025

Alumni Stories: Zaya

Zaya Vasconcelos

Attended 2022-2024

Zaya studied Business, Psychology and Economics is currently undertaking a degree apprenticeship at Bloomberg and the Walbrook Institute

 

What are you doing now?

I work as a fixed income specialist at Bloomberg, as part of a degree apprenticeship at the Walbrook Institute. This means that I am studying for a BSc in Finance and Investment while I’m gaining valuable, hands-on experience. As a fixed income specialist within the analytics department, I help to bridge the gap between financial theory and real-world application by working with clients to solve complex fixed income queries related to market theory. I’m proactive in my approach by conducting client calls and delivering tailored training to deepen product understanding and drive engagement.

 

How have you found your degree apprenticeship experience so far?

I’m thoroughly enjoying it! The topics I study at university often overlap with my work at Bloomberg, which allows me to apply what I’m learning. It’s great to be able to strengthen my theoretical foundation, at the same time that I’m staying sharp on both academic and industry development.

 

What has been the highlight of university so far?

The highlight of university so far has been achieving a First in both assignments that I’ve done so far. This has been the first time writing an academic style essay and I'm proud of the grades I have achieved.

 

What did your time at Harris Clapham teach you that you’ve been able to apply to your life since?

My time at Harris Clapham Sixth Form taught me the importance of taking joy in subjects, even if they aren’t directly related to your future career or degree. For example, although I studied Economics, which is related to my work in Finance, I also studied Psychology, which isn’t a finance-related subject. Psychology taught me a lot about the human mind, and I carry this learning everywhere with me. It’s so important to use sixth form as a time to engage with your subjects, even if the application isn’t obvious.

I would also say that the teachers were very supportive and helpful during exam season and UCAS, and that this helped me to stay motivated and organised – skills that I’ve used in my work since.

 

What advice would you give to current or prospective students?

To current students navigating A levels, I can’t stress enough how important it is to start revising early. The content you learn in year 12 isn’t repeated in year 13, so you should be revisiting the content frequently. Exams will come quickly, and you will regret not revising early enough, so don’t procrastinate and stay on top of revision.

 

What are your future aspirations?

I hope to continue my career in finance at Bloomberg. In three years, I’ll be able to specialise in different asset classes and expand my knowledge further. After this, I’ll be able to choose between sales or a different department. I’m not sure where exactly I’ll end up, but I’m looking forward to completing my Finance degree and climbing the corporate ladder.

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