James Thorn, who graduated with an MSc in International Business Management last year, has been presented with a Young Entrepreneur Award from HRH The Duke of York. James now runs his own property management business after being supported through the Grad2Director alumni start-up programme at York St John University.
The news of his win comes in 
the same week that the Grad2 programmes have been nominated for a prestigious AGCAS Award for Excellence.
The Duke of York Young Entrepreneur Awards are organised annually and presented at the University of Huddersfield.“I am so honoured to receive this amazing award. With the support of York St John and Grad2Director, our company has had an incredible start to the year,” said James, cofounder of Tenancy Stream.
This comes as York St John’s Grad2Director and Grad2Freelancer programmes have been honoured at industry level for their success at boosting graduate outcomes. The programmes were developed in partnership between York St John University and Dr John Park, an international expert in product and service innovation. They have been nominated for the AGCAS (Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services) Award for Supporting Student/Graduate Employability.
Head of Student Opportunities at York St John University, Emma Vincent said, “It’s absolutely fantastic to see the Grad2 programmes and our graduates succeed and receive this kind of recognition, it is incredibly well deserved. The competition was fierce but we were so proud to nominate James as our York St John University Duke of York Young Entrepreneur Awards 2019 winner. James was one of our first Grad2Director participants when the programme was first piloted in 2017 with the Grad2Freelancer programme being added in 2018 and we now have 105 participants currently enrolled. We’re always looking to do more to improve the opportunities we have available to graduates and this scheme affords them an extra level of support and confidence as they forge a path in the business world.”
For more information about Grad2Director & Grad2Freelancer programmes, please visit:
- https://www.yorksj.ac.uk/careers-placements–opportunities/2018-graduates/grad2director-and-grad2freelancer/grad2freelancer/
- https://www.yorksj.ac.uk/alumni/how-we-can-help/grad2director/