Baroness Carmen Smith tells students they can ‘be what they want to be’

Former Coleg Menai student Baroness Carmen Smith visited the new Tŷ Menai campus to tell current learners: “You can be what you want to be.”

Carmen became the youngest ever member of the House of Lords when she was appointed as a Plaid Cymru peer in March.

The 28-year-old, who studied Level 3 Business Studies between 2013 and 2015, chose the title Baroness Smith of Llanfaes after the Anglesey village where she grew up.

Carmen visited the new Tŷ Menai campus in Bangor to share her inspiring story with the current Business Studies cohort.

“My advice to everyone is to just aim for what you want, and to know that anything is possible if you really want it,” she said. “You can be what you want to be, and don’t listen to anyone who tells you that you can’t.”

While at Coleg Menai, Carmen was elected as Student Union President for Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, having been inspired to take an interest in politics aged around 15.

This sowed the seeds for her career, which saw her become acting president of the National Union of Students before working at both the European Parliament in Brussels and the Senedd in Cardiff.

Carmen said at college she developed crucial skills such as public speaking, and enjoyed the freedom to find her own path in life.

Picture: UK Parliament

“My favourite memory of being a student at Coleg Menai was the freedom,” she said. “Leaving school and going to a new place, meeting new people - that was the thing that I was most excited about and enjoyed.

“I’m from Llanfaes and in my class there were people from Nefyn, who I would have never met if I hadn’t gone to college.

“I enjoyed it. It was a different way of learning, going from a school setting where you have someone pushing you more to make sure you’re completing your work, and then changing to a setting where it’s your responsibility. I think it’s a good way of setting you up for life and jobs in terms of managing your own time and work.

“The skills I learnt at college through the business course included public speaking for the first time, learning how to present in front of people. I think they’re some of the main things that I take forward to today, and that’s where I first started gaining that confidence to speak in front of people.”

After college, Carmen studied law at Bangor University, but left after a year to become deputy president of NUS Wales. She went on to become acting president, and successfully campaigned for changes to how young carers could apply for support, having faced obstacles herself while caring for her father.

Carmen went on to work in politics for Plaid Cymru, and also in public affairs for a renewable energy company.

While acknowledging that university is the right path for some students, Carmen is “proud” that she doesn’t have a degree, as her experience shows it is not always essential to career success.

“What I think is really important is that there are so many opportunities out there - whether it’s going to college, doing an apprenticeship or going to university - and it’s not necessarily a set linear path.

“For me personally, I don’t have a degree but it hasn’t stopped me going on to do different jobs and also doing what I do now in the House of Lords. I think it’s important to note that college is a great route for people.”

Carmen was impressed with the new Tŷ Menai campus at Parc Menai, saying: “It’s fresh, modern, and I think it’s a great place to be a student.”

Carmen was 27 when she was appointed to the House of Lords in March. She is the youngest ever member of the UK’s upper chamber, and the only current member under 30.

Answering questions from students at Tŷ Menai, she said she faced criticism over her age at the time of her appointment, but was determined to get on with the job so that the next young woman to join the House of Lords would not have to face the same obstacles.

She said she chose to include Llanfaes in her title because she wants to represent people and communities whose voices might not normally be heard.

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