Before enrolling on his Access course, Joshua had studied electrical installation at the college and established a successful career as a self-employed electrician. However, Joshua did not find this job fulfilling. His lack of fulfilment, combined with a recent health diagnosis, prompted Joshua to consider a change in career. With the dream of becoming a mental health nurse, Joshua then enrolled on to our Access to HE: Health Professionals course.
At the start of his course, Joshua initially wanted to be a mental health nurse but soon realised he wanted to integrate social work into his future. He says that he wouldn’t have been able to complete the course without the support of his tutors, Amy Capper and Chris Geal, and has even recommended the college to his mum!
Joshua seems to be thriving at university. He is a course and board representative for his health and social course, as well as organising symposium groups for students on his course to see what topics they need help on. Joshua relays that on to course tutors who will then recap those topics students need extra help with.
Moving forward, Joshua hopes to gain more experience in the health and social care sector as an integrated practitioner (both nursing and social work) as well as one day exploring the politics of the sector. Joshua would like to be involved in changing the way things are set up and ran at present.
Joshua has a lot of appreciation for those at the college who helped get him to where he is now, and he couldn’t recommend this Access course enough. Joshua said: “For anyone thinking of a career in health that requires a degree, I would absolutely recommend this course. Not only are the tutors some of the most supportive I’ve ever come across, the flexibility and content of the course is easily manageable around work and family life. Evenings worked great for me; it allowed me to continue full time work whilst studying towards my new career!”
Joshua also felt incredibly prepared to study at university level after his Access course, saying: “I recommend doing an Access to Higher Education course as you get a good knowledge of referencing before starting your degree as well as getting a good amount of knowledge from experienced tutors.”
We wish Joshua the best of luck for his future plans; he’s a great inspiration for those wanting to take that big step into changing their careers or take the time to upskill.
If Joshua's story has inspired you to change your career path or upskill within your current role, our Higher Education and Access to Higher Education courses are the perfect place to begin!
Find out more about our Access to HE courses
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