HUNDREDS of people who missed out on 'uni' later decide to go back to studying with the Open University - here are the stories of two recent graduates.

 

PATIENTS on a psychiatric intensive care ward mucked in to help Eve Bampton-Wilton get her psychology degree.

Eve, from Minehead, was juggling her studies with the Open University with working as a healthcare assistant.

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“The main challenge was trying to balance studying and working full-time – and trying to have a bit of down time as well,” she said.

“I became very good at managing my time, studying and writing assignments when the ward was quiet on my night shifts.

“I studied everywhere – I’d even take my revision cards to work with me and get patients to test me, which they really enjoyed.”

Eve, who decided against gong to ‘a conventional uni’ after completing her A levels, joined a psychologists group and created a ‘hearing voices’ group for patients on her ward, an initiative she hopes will one day be used trust-wide.

She added: “There were a few obstacles along the way which I had to manage, but by then studying was a ‘part of me’ so it was never really an option to just give up - looking back I can't quite believe how I managed to keep it all going.

“The last module was the toughest, it was so hard to finish the last few assessments and to revise properly for the final exam, but I could see the light.

“I swore to myself there would be no more exams, but that went out of the window as soon as I got a new graduate job as it involves studying at a postgraduate level.”

 

 

LISA Newby was spurred into doing an OU degree in molecular science to help her daughter with her triple science GCSE.

Lisa, of Langport, who signed up at the age of 39 in 2008, was working as a lab technician in her daughter’s school, which rekindled her love of chemistry from her own school days.

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She said: “I had no idea it would take over my life.

“I’ve spent the weekends revising for exams whilst also taking part in tap dance show performances with my dancing colleagues.

“My course books have been on every holiday with me and were my entertainment whilst on an extended holiday in April 2010 due to the ash cloud from the Icelandic eruption.”

Lisa, who had recently been through the trauma of a divorce, discovered she had got a 2:1 on the day of her father’s funeral.

She added: “It was exciting to graduate but also very sad.

“I’m very sad that Dad wasn’t there, but thrilled that my Mum, brother and sister-in-law, my daughter, my boyfriend, and my friends were there. Without them I would still be studying.”