Folarin Odunubi

BA Jurisprudence 2015
Corporate Mergers & Acquisitions Associate

Folarin emigrated from Nigeria to the UK shortly after his eighth birthday and 10 years later was one of the first students from his state school in Dagenham to be accepted into Oxford. Much of his time at Oxford was dedicated to improving access for prospective students from under-represented socio-economic and educational backgrounds. This was in part focused on ‘demystifying’ Oxford through his work on Keble At Large and the UNIQ Summer School. He was also one of the trailblazers in improving access for black students through the University’s first Target Oxbridge residential programme and his election as the Oxford African and Caribbean Society’s Access and Outreach Officer. Folarin remains committed to improving the education and opportunities of young people; at 21 years old he became the youngest person ever to be elected to the governing body of his secondary school.

In 2016, Folarin was awarded a training contract from an elite ‘Magic Circle’ law firm in his first year of university, and the prestigious Freshfields Stephen Lawrence Scholarship in his second year. He is now a Corporate M&A Associate at global law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

During his time at Keble, Folarin was President of the Harris Law Society and Equal Opportunities Officer of the JCR. He has remained involved in the Keble community: sitting on the Keble Anti-racism Task Force, organising an annual Q&A and dinner for Keble students interested in a career in commercial law, and representing Keble alumni in the annual ‘Ghosts’ football match.

“Keble is without a doubt one of the best communities I have had the privilege of being a part of. The staff and students are incredibly supportive and from the day I arrived, it has always felt like a home away from home. The College provided a platform to leave a significant and lasting impact in every space I entered.”