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 Mature Student
Career:
After school, I worked as an apprentice at Cardiff
Docks for 4 years. I then joined the Merchant
Navy for 2 years, mainly in the Bay of Bengal,
Pakistan and Bangladesh. I learned more in 6
months of being in those countries than I would
have learned in 10 years at home. On my return,
I joined Konica as a technical representative,
training people how to use photocopying equipment.
Career
change:
I decided at the age of 31 to go back to college,
as I鈥檇 always wanted to do a medical degree.
I was in a better position to do it at that
age because I had some money, and I was mature
enough to be able to sit and concentrate on
the course.
Why
chiropody:
At the college 'Open Day', the first people
I met were the chiropody people, and I was very
impressed with their course and facilities.
I signed up to do a BSc Hons in Chiropody. I
was interested in the fact that it was possible
to do a range of work within this career, both
privately and in the NHS. For me, it was important
to do a degree that gave me a qualification
at the end that was usable. Demand for chiropody
is growing all the time.
Being
a mature student:
There wasn鈥檛 a problem. Personally, I was able
to concentrate more than if I鈥檇 done a degree
when I was 18, when there are a lot of other
distractions! I was more settled in my life,
and I WANTED to be there, doing the work. As
far as the other students were concerned, they
didn鈥檛 care what age I was. As long as I wore
jeans and a t-shirt and mucked in with everything,
I was treated as one of the gang.
New
career:
After getting my degree, I began work for the
Rhondda Health Trust Unit and Merthyr Cynon
Health Unit, and 7 years ago, I decided to open
my own private practice. There are lots of constraints
in the NHS - the private work gives me more
variety. You get to do things like sports injuries
and nail surgery, which is very satisfying (honest!).
Advice:
Look carefully into whatever you choose to pursue
beforehand. Do the research, and make sure that
you look at what the final result will be.
I
got an A Level in Human Biology before I went
to do my degree, and it was invaluable. Lots
of people arrived there with no qualifications
at all, and were struggling when it came to
doing Physiology and Anatomy, because they didn鈥檛
have the basics.
I
think everyone should get out, work and enjoy
themselves when they鈥檙e in their teens and twenties.
Then they should go to college in their thirties,
after which most distractions are out of the
way.
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