How a nightmare results day became a life-defining moment for Coventry University Vice-Chancellor Professor John Latham CBE

I completely failed my A level results the first time round - but I was very good at snooker! When I failed, the initial feeling was that the world had ended. Now what do I do? I had all these plans of where I was going to go. 

What is really interesting for me now is that when people ask me what the big defining moments in my life are, I say that one of them is the day I failed my A level results. It made me really think about what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go.

Professor John Latham CBE, Coventry University Vice-Chancellor

My second results day was brilliant because I’d achieved the A levels I wanted to achieve and the options I wanted were available to me. I was then very clear about where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do,” he said.  

I was very lucky to come to Coventry. I studied here, got my first degree and I’ve had a very successful career. I’ve done many things, I’ve worked in different parts of the world, been involved with different industrial collaborators and I’ve built a better future for myself.

Professor John Latham CBE, Coventry University Vice-Chancellor

I’m passionate about providing support to students. I know from first-hand experience the enormous difference having someone there to talk to can make, it changes lives. If you haven’t quite got the grades that you were expecting or if you just want to look at other options, then Clearing is something that we are really good at. 

We have a huge, flexible team that are here to help you choose your path and enable you to do what you want to do. If you are unsure of what you want to do next, my main advice is to talk to someone. 

You can talk to one of our advisors and make sure you take every opportunity to explore every option that we have as an organisation about what your future career might look like.

Professor John Latham CBE, Coventry University Vice-Chancellor