Emma Kelly has come back to college to gain the qualifications needed to go to University. Our Access to HE Nursing and Midwifery course has allowed Emma to apply for a Mental Health Nursing degree and completely change her career. Covid stopped Emma from working, however, it gave her the chance to volunteer and find a career that she is truly passionate about.
Covid stopped Emma from going to work.
“I’m a single parent and through Covid, I was unable to work as I was a Nail Technician. Through the Pandemic, I was volunteering, delivering meals to the vulnerable. I like to be busy and I have always liked to be working.”
A passion for mental health.
“I wanted to go into Mental Health Nursing, I did the Level 2 pre-access last year and that gave me more of an idea of what the industry is like. The natural progression was to go onto Level 3, what I am doing now and then I’m off to University in September. I am now working in a challenging dementia care home, so mental health is prominent in my work and something I am passionate about.”
The pandemic highlighted how much Mental Health professionals were needed.
“Initially, I wanted to do Paramedic Science but on Level 2 we did a module on investigating careers and Mental Health Nursing stood out for me. At university, I will be studying Mental Health Nursing. I want to work with adults in particular and the placements will help me decide what setting and which patients I want to work with. I think after the pandemic I realised how much mental health specialists and practitioners were needed.”
“This year has been a lot more intense, learning about biology and psychology. The biology has been really interesting and it’s amazing what your body does. It’s crazy.”
You get so much support from your tutors and peers.
“When I first came back as a mature student, I felt a bit out of my depth. Doing the Level 2, writing assignments and being around others in the same boat helped. You get so much support from the lecturers, they are happy to sit down with you and explain it further if you don’t understand something. Everybody else on the course is willing to help one another and we have a group chat where we can ask questions.”
If you are passionate and determined, you can do it.
“If you are passionate about the subject and determined to come back into education, you can do it. The first day, it was overwhelming but if it’s what you want to do, you can do it. Without this course, I would’ve never gotten into university. As a mature student as well, you are more willing to learn as you want to do it. It’s interesting, rather than something you have to do.”
Find out more about our Access to Higher Education Courses here!