Recent graduate from the BA(Hons) Integrated Working with Children and Families Top up degree, Intesar Lashram, shares her experiences of studying at the University of Worcester alongside working in a setting.
“Before starting my studies, I worked in early a years setting as a nursery practitioner for 5 years. Just before the Covid-19 outbreak I became a mother and began my maternity leave. During my leave I initially thought about looking into what I can do with the skills I have and what courses there are out there to support me to develop further skills and knowledge. The curiosity influenced me into getting back into education, and that is when I studied the Early Years Foundation degree at the University of Worcester. After completing the course, I explored the pathways at the University of Worcester and that’s when I decided to proceed with the BA (Hons) Integrated Working with Children and Families Top-up degree.
Initially I was worried about the dissertation and the word count as the last time I completed assignments was when I was in college in 2013. However, I had the best support from both Angela Hodgkins and Tom Weaver from the university and I am very grateful.
During the completion of both of my courses, I became a deputy manager within a nursery setting and covered my manager’s maternity leave where I was able to use the knowledge and skills learnt from my studies to develop practice.
My academic learning does not stop here. The modules studied in both courses have sparked an interest in safeguarding and supporting those in need. This has had an impact on my decision to progressing onto the MA social work at the University of Worcester which I initially hadn’t considered.”
If you would like to find out more about the FdA Early Years, visit: https://www.worcester.ac.uk/courses/early-years-0-8-foundation-degree
If you would like to find out more about the BA(Hons) Integrated Working with Children and Families Top up degree, visit: https://www.worcester.ac.uk/courses/integrated-working-with-children-families-ba-hons-top-up-degree