Heather Allansdottir, Class of 2003

Hills Road was a profoundly formative experience for me, shaping most of my work since. I joined in 2001, just days before the September 11th attacks. My second year was spent organising protests against the Iraq war - getting to know much of the student body and many Cambridge University students.

It was a perfect place of alchemy between ideas and experience, leading me to study Political Science. I still draw upon this formative time in my work on space law and space sustainability, through my consultancy Astrodottir and my project Decolonise the Cosmos.

Last year, I was honoured to help with mock interviews for upper sixth students and was struck by how well-read, engaged and dynamic they were. I would have been very intimidated by their intelligence at their age!

I also still cherish my English lessons with the amazing Dr Hinchcliff, who introduced me to contemporary writers and encouraged me to apply to Oxford. Without that early support, I doubt I would have written my first novel. That, and my closest friendships of 20 years, are remarkable gifts for which I will always be grateful.

Heather Allansdottir, March 2026