Ben Scott 31/07/2025 Ben Scott 31/07/2025

From 2:1 to First: How Present Pal Supports the Full Presentation Journey for Disabled Students

Discover how Present Pal helped Isabella, a dyslexic student at Nottingham Trent University, go from a 2:1 to a First in her presentations. By supporting every stage of the presentation journey, from planning and pacing to confidence on the day, Present Pal empowers disabled students to perform at their best.

For many disabled students, presentations can be one of the most daunting and difficult parts of university life.

Whether it’s remembering what to say, managing anxiety, or trying to deliver a well-paced performance, the barriers often go far beyond typical nerves. Yet presentations continue to carry weight in assessment criteria across courses — sometimes accounting for a significant percentage of a student's final grade.

That was the case for Isabella, a dyslexic student studying Media Communications and Culture at Nottingham Trent University. Her second-year presentations contributed 20% to her overall degree classification — and the pressure to perform well, despite the challenges, was real.

The Challenge: Memory, Anxiety, and the Pressure to Perform

Before being recommended Present Pal through the Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA), Isabella faced a familiar set of barriers:

Memory difficulties that caused her to forget key talking points
A tendency to rely heavily on scripts — making eye contact and audience engagement difficult
Presentation anxiety that only intensified when she felt underprepared

“I would usually forget what I planned to say, meaning I’d end up skipping parts of my presentation. Anxiety probably played a role too — it all goes hand in hand.”

— Isabella

Her approach, like many students in a similar position, was to overprepare with dense notes and scripts. But this often made things worse — increasing cognitive load and reducing spontaneity, connection, and confidence.

The Solution: A Tool That Supports the Full Presentation Journey

Isabella’s DSA Needs Assessor introduced her to Present Pal, a tool designed to support disabled students through every stage of the presentation process — not just rehearsal.

With Present Pal, Isabella was able to:

Replace full scripts with bullet point prompts, helping her retain key ideas without overloading her working memory
Use the built-in stopwatch to manage timing and improve pacing — essential when presentations had to meet strict time limits
Practice with clear structure, reducing anxiety and improving confidence

“Now I don’t read paragraphs from my notes. I’m prompted, which means I can remember my point and look up - not just read off the board.”

— Isabella

She also explored Present Pal’s in-app training, including sections like Engaging the Audience, which broke down key skills using simple, relatable language and scenarios.

The Result: Better Grades, Better Confidence, Better Experience

The impact was immediate — and measurable.

📊 Isabella earned a low 2:1 on her first presentation using Present Pal.
🔥 For her second, a Dragons’ Den-style pitch where she used Present Pal throughout, she achieved a First.

“It’s improved my confidence and prompted me to practice beforehand — not just read my notes out on the day.”

— Isabella

Why Support Staff and DSA Assessors Trust Present Pal

Present Pal helps students like Isabella to move from overwhelm to structure, from anxiety to confidence, and from underperformance to academic success.

While other tools focus solely on rehearsal, Present Pal is purpose-built to support the entire presentation journey:

Structuring talking points
Practicing with prompts
Managing time
Reducing stress
Building lasting communication skills

It’s designed with accessibility in mind, offering a clean, intuitive interface that meets the needs of students with a wide range of cognitive, processing, and emotional support needs — including dyslexia, ADHD, and mental health conditions.

Ready to Support Your Students Differently?

If you're a disability adviser, study skills tutor, or DSA Needs Assessor, and you work with students who struggle with verbal communication, memory, or confidence, Present Pal could be the support they need to thrive.

📩 Book a demo with our Education Manager, Joe Dawber.
🔗 Learn more about Present Pal: Present Pal for DSA

Guest User 10/12/2020 Guest User 10/12/2020

A Year With Present Pal: 2020 Wrapped Up

As the year comes to a close we’d like to reflect together on the successes and challenges that 2020 brought to our team. In this blog post, we want to invite you to take a trip down memory lane with us and look back at the biggest milestones of 2020, encourage you to grab a warm drink and enjoy the Christmas Ad that the whole team created and see what’s on our recommended holiday season watchlist!

As the year comes to a close we’d like to reflect together on the successes and challenges of 2020. In this blog post, we want to invite you to take a trip down memory lane with us and look back at the biggest milestones of 2020. We encourage you to grab a warm drink and enjoy the Festive Ad the whole team created from home!

Present Pal Christmas Ad

After such a crazy year we would also like to bring you some festive cheer! Present Pal team got creative and worked tirelessly to present you the best Christmas ad you’ll ever see!

Forget Coca-Cola ad! Forget John Lewis ad too! Give this a watch and we promise you won’t regret it!

What’s coming in 2021?

2021 is set to be a very exciting year for Present Pal. We are ready to embark on some new and exciting projects, launch our Pilot Programs, and release some really exciting new updates!

Get in touch with Hannah or Amer to keep up with the latest news! You can also follow us on social media and get to know about the latest updates as they come!