Sarah Purvis
Praslin
Summary
A Marine Biology graduate committed to life-long learning and staying curious about our people and our planet. Actively seeking opportunities to expand practical skills, gain broader research exposure, and contribute to collaborative conservation initiatives.
Overview
9
9
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Research Assistant
Save Our Seas Foundation
05.2025 - 01.2026
- Supported long-term marine and terrestrial monitoring programmes, including coral reef and reef fish surveys, BRUVs deployments, manta ray surveys and manta cam dives, juvenile shark mark–recapture, turtle and tortoise monitoring, pelagic shark fishing, and acoustic receiver maintenance.
- Conducted fieldwork and research dives, including boat handling and support for visiting scientists.
- Managed data entry and contributed to analysis of ecological datasets (e.g. BRUVs event/point measures, Coral Point Count, manta identification).
- Assisted with animal handling and tagging, including green and hawksbill turtles, juvenile lemon and blacktip sharks, and juvenile tortoises.
- Contributed to quarterly reporting, science communications, and social media scheduling.
- Maintained boats, dive gear, and research equipment.
Account Relationship Manager
Henry Stewart Talks
07.2023 - 04.2025
- Ensured licensed users could access video collections by building strong relationships with library staff, faculty, administrators, and researchers.
- Delivered internal marketing campaigns and webinars to increase awareness and utilisation of resources.
- Responded to enquiries and proactively engaged target users to promote effective resource use.
- Managed account information and supported lead development and key contact qualification.
- Liaised with clients via online meetings to meet account needs.
- Demonstrated strong organisational, communication, and teamwork skills while managing multiple tasks and projects.
Educational Assistant
Save Our Seas Foundation
08.2022 - 09.2022
- Assisted with yearly Kids Camps (a marine education programmes) for children aged 8–16, delivering interactive talks and activities to inspire environmental stewardship.
- Supervised water-based activities, ensuring the safety of participants during snorkelling sessions.
- Collaborated with team members to organise and deliver educational content, demonstrating satisfactory communication and organisational skills.
- Introduced to real-world examples of scientific data collection and ethical animal handling, such as shark and turtle tagging, and genetic sampling.
Waitress
Mamarita's Afro Caribbean Restaurant
03.2021 - 05.2022
- Provided customer service in a fast-paced environment, managing multiple tasks such as taking orders, serving food, and mixing drinks.
- Promoted brunch events on social media through curated posts and stories before, during, and after the events.
- Developed interpersonal and problem-solving skills while handling customer enquiries and resolving issues.
Lifestyle Model
Getty Images
01.2021 - 04.2022
- Participated in weekly photo shoots with themes such as healthy eating, fitness, and shopping.
- Demonstrated adaptability and professionalism while working with photographers, and clients.
- Photos featured multiple times on prominent online news platforms, such as BBC News.
- Gained first-hand experience in planning and executing successful photoshoots.
- Suggested sustainable sourcing of props for photoshoots, such as buying second-hand clothing from charity shops, or online on platforms such as Depop.
Student Ambassador
University of Plymouth
10.2020 - 03.2022
- Represented the university at events such as Open Days, Freshers' Fair, and subject-specific seminars.
- Conducted campus tours and provided tailored advice to prospective students, showcasing strong communication and conversational skills.
- Led students living in university accommodation on bimonthly social activities and events. This greatly improved my leadership skills as well as the ability to communicate directions and expectations to a group of 20+ students in a professional but friendly manner
- Responsible for taking photographs and videos during student activities for social media, and providing comprehensive feedback on the success of events.
- Willingly volunteered to take the lead on filming virtual tours of the university accommodations due to Covid-19 restrictions, which made it impossible for students to visit and do the tours themselves. The 'vlog-style' footage is now used widely on their website, and it is played live during open days.
Golf Club Assistant
Constance Lemuria
11.2018 - 12.2018
- Assisted with the smooth running of the MCB Tour Championship, ensuring golf carts were charged, cleaned, and parked appropriately
- Provided professional golfers and caddies with refreshments and cold towels and interacted with a diverse clientele from different social classes, providing me with the unique opportunity to improve my social elegance
- Engaged in reception duties by handling phone calls, and efficiently booking hotel clients onto the golf course
Blue Economy Intern
SYAH (SiDS Youth Aims Hub)
12.2016 - 12.2016
- Supported conservation efforts on Aride Island.
- Key tasks involved cleaning boats to ensure that they were in optimal condition for research and conservation excursions, collecting earth samples from various locations to monitor soil richness, participating in turtle walks to monitor nesting patterns and behaviours of turtles, and bird censuses at night.
- Collaborated with a team to achieve conservation goals, demonstrating adaptability and teamwork in remote field conditions.
- Selected to participate in a nine-day educational trip to Mauritius for above average performance during the internship. The trip was a pivotal experience that further inspired my interest in environmental conservation and sustainability, and it provided a platform for me to network with like-minded peers.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Marine Biology & Coastal Ecology
University of Plymouth
Devon, UK01.2022
A-Levels - Maths, Biology & Physics
School of Advanced Level Studies
Anse Royale01.2018
IGCSEs -
Praslin Secondary School
Grand Anse, Praslin, Seychelles01.2016
Skills
- Working in remote and challenging environments
- Organisational and time-management skills
- Attention to detail and data accuracy
- Proficient in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- Social media management (for blogs, posts, and outreach)
- Scientific data collection, data entry and quality control
- Teamwork and collaboration abilities
- Ethical animal handling, animal tagging and genetic sampling
- Statistical modelling (R-Studio), video analysis of BRUV deployments, Coral Point Count (CPC) analysis
- Salesforce
- Scientific diving
- Acoustic telemetry (receiver deployment and maintenance)
Certification
PADI Open Water ADVANCED Diver,
Seychelles Drivers License
RYA Level 2 Powerboat License
Languages
English
Proficient
C2
French
Upper Intermediate
B2
Creole
Proficient
C2
Timeline
Research Assistant
Save Our Seas Foundation
05.2025 - 01.2026
Account Relationship Manager
Henry Stewart Talks
07.2023 - 04.2025
Educational Assistant
Save Our Seas Foundation
08.2022 - 09.2022
Waitress
Mamarita's Afro Caribbean Restaurant
03.2021 - 05.2022
Lifestyle Model
Getty Images
01.2021 - 04.2022
Student Ambassador
University of Plymouth
10.2020 - 03.2022
Golf Club Assistant
Constance Lemuria
11.2018 - 12.2018
Blue Economy Intern
SYAH (SiDS Youth Aims Hub)
12.2016 - 12.2016
IGCSEs -
Praslin Secondary School
Bachelor of Science - Marine Biology & Coastal Ecology
University of Plymouth
A-Levels - Maths, Biology & Physics
School of Advanced Level Studies
References
Rebecca Figg, Residence Operations Co-ordinator, Estates & Facilities, University of Plymouth, 01752 588646, rebecca.figg@plymouth.ac.uk
Rebecca is unable to provide a personal reference but is happy to confirm the dates I worked with them as a student ambassador and my role.
Jennifer Daniel, Director - The Biomedical & Life Sciences Collection, HSTalks, jennifer@hstalks.com
Henriette Grimmel, Director D'Arros Research Centre, Save Our Seas Foundation,enriette@saveourseas.com
Hobbies and interests
- Jigsaw Puzzles
- Self-development
- Dance and Choreography
- Fitness, Health & Wellness
- Cooking
- Social psychology