Adele gains First-Class Honours degree after eight-year gap from her Level 5 studies
Adele Ross has graduated from York College & University Centre with a First-Class honours degree – eight years on from believing she had reached the culmination of her educational journey with a Level 5 qualification.
Our 2025 Graduation Day Principal’s Award winner only realised she qualified for our BA (Hons) Leading Children’s Development and Learning (Top-up) course when she was browsing the York College website a week before it began in September 2024!
She wasted no time in enrolling, though, and impressed so much during her studies that she has now swapped her student lanyard for a staff one as a part-time tutor of our Level 1 Caring for Children students.
That job and her top-grade degree were not on Adele’s radar when she arrived on Campus a little apprehensive at the age of 46 and she recalled: “I had no real expectations at the beginning, but I just decided to give it a go and I got a First.
“It all feels quite surreal, especially being a mature student and having taken a few years of different courses to build up to this. I’d done up to my Level 5 and thought there was nowhere else to go with my education.
"I had no real intention of doing a degree but, then, I saw the top-up course for Level 6 and I thought it was great that I could complete a degree in a year. I literally decided to do it a week before the course started after I saw it online and checked with College that I qualified for it.
"I was a bit apprehensive whether I’d fit into it, especially being older and whether I’d actually be up to that level. I had to get used to everything like referencing, studying and navigating the online systems again, because my Level 5 had been eight years before but, by Christmas, I think I’d got into a good flow and routine.
"I ended up finishing the course having gained more confidence in myself and with the knowledge that I am capable of that level of study and actually know more than I thought!”
Despite the long break between her Level 5 and Level 6 studies, Adele is no stranger to education.
Her thirst for development in the variety of pre-school, primary school and wrap-around care mental health and pastoral roles she has fulfilled over more than a 20-year period has seen her complete a number of related courses.
The first industry-linked qualification she gained was her Level 3 in Management in Early Years and Play Work in 2007 and her CV also boasts certificates for Level 2 Mental Health, Level 2 ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant), Level 2 Mental Health and Wellbeing, an NPQ in Lead Behaviour and Culture, Level 3 in Children’s Development and Level 4 in Early Years Management.
Such a wealth of experience and knowledge – acquired both in the workplace and classroom – was not something that College wanted to lose from Campus and Adele was subsequently offered a tutoring opportunity.
“I’ve started teaching some of the Level 1 students in Childcare, so I’m just gradually building my way into that,” she explained. “It was a bit strange at first, putting on a staff lanyard instead of a student one, but I’m enjoying it and it’s a really good environment to work in with a really nice team.”
College are also considering tapping into Adele’s expertise in the area of adverse childhood experiences.
For anybody, meanwhile, in her position just over 12 months ago, who might be considering a return to Higher Education as a mature student, Adele highly recommends College’s smaller cohorts when compared to other universities that typically enrol a larger numbers of learners.
“The small classes make things less overwhelming when you’re doing group presentations and things like that,” she pointed out. “It felt a bit more casual and relaxed and gives you the confidence to get up and chat to people and work in different groups.
“It was a good environment to go back to after such a long gap between my Level 5 and Level 6 and, as soon as I was in the room and met everybody, I didn’t feel conscious about my age at all. There were people in the same boat as me and of a similar age.
“The tutors helped in those early days, too, because they were really friendly, welcoming and approachable. I could contact them with any questions and queries.
“I also got some help with academic writing, which helped me get back into the flow in terms of research and referencing everything again.”
To learn more about our BA (Hons) Leading Children's Development & Learning course, please click here
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