Cardiac arrest death student gets first class honour

Clarissa Nicholls, 20, took a hike in France on her day off, and died from a cardiac arrest

A Cambridge University student who died from a sudden cardiac arrest a year before she was expected to graduate has been honoured with a first class certificate.

Languages student Clarissa Nicholls was 20 when she collapsed and died while hiking in France in May 2023.

The keen athlete was later found to have an undiagnosed life-threatening condition - arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy - and her friends have so far raised more than £50,000 to fund ECG heart screening days for other students.

At a graduation ceremony on Thursday, Clarissa's parents Hilary and Simon Nicholls were presented with their daughter's certificate at the university's Senate House congregation.

Clarissa's parents Hilary and Simon Nicholls received their daughter's certificate in absentia

Miss Nicholls was studying French and Italian at Trinity Hall, and at the time of her death was abroad in her third year, as part of her four-year degree.

She had been working for a publishing company in Paris and just days before her 21st birthday took a hike in the Gorges du Verdon with her flatmate where she collapsed, and died.

Nearby hikers - one of whom was trained in first aid - had rushed to help, performing CPR before an air ambulance arrived at the remote spot, but it was too late.

Clarissa was a keen hockey player and runner

After Clarissa's death, her family, from Wandsworth, London - and her friends - threw themselves into raising awareness of heart conditions in young people, and raising funds for ECG screening for others with undiagnosed issues.

More than £100,000 has been raised in Clarissa's name, in collaboration with the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (Cry).

Another fundraiser started by her student friends Jessica Reeve and Izzy Winter now stands at more than £50,000.

They initially hoped their GoFundMe page - Clarissa's Campaign for Cambridge Hearts - would raise £7,000, which would pay for one day of ECG screening for about 100 young people.

But it quickly reached that target and exceeded it.

Clarissa was photographed here during Fresher's Week at Trinity Hall in 2020

Clarissa should have been expecting to graduate on Thursday and was predicted to complete her studies with the highest honours.

A University of Cambridge spokesperson said that the university's policy "does not allow us to confer a degree on someone who has passed away before completing their course, however, we can issue a certificate honouring their achievement".

In her absence, Clarissa's parents received her certificate.

Her mother, Hilary Nicholls said: "We are very grateful to Trinity Hall for including us in celebrating what should be Clarissa's final stage of her journey as an undergraduate at the college.

"Despite a journey cut tragically short we want to celebrate her achievements alongside her cohort as it should have been. We know that we would have been very proud of her today and we remain proud of her dedication, determination and resilience as she set out to be the very best she could be.

"She put everything into her studies, the friends she made here and the staff that supported her along the way including while she was on her year abroad.

"We are grateful for the happy times she clearly took away with her to the next life."