A student from the University of Winchester has gained a prized place on a University of Oxford summer programme. 

Nathaniel Bareham from Thatcham is one of just 130 applicants to be accepted onto the Uniq+ Research Internship programme for students from under-represented and disadvantaged backgrounds. 

The 20-year-old, who is the first from his family to go to university, is currently studying Computer Science at Winchester and during his placement he will be working on a project entitled “Application of Machine Learning Methods to research problems in Computational Biology”. 

The selection panel were impressed by the fact that Nathaniel had, in his spare time, already undertaken his own machine learning project in which he designed a programme for spotting the signs of pneumonia on chest X-rays using 48,000 X-ray images available online. 

“I’ve always been interested in biology and medicine and how we can use computing in these areas,” said Nathaniel. 

 Uniq+ aims to give undergraduates the chance to experience life as a postgraduate research student and gaining a place enhances the CV of successful candidates’ and boost their chances of gaining postgraduate positions. 

The seven-week internship, which starts in July, includes accommodation at an Oxford college and a £3,300 stipend to cover living expenses.