Adults learn at Teesside

Looking to get back into education? Want to enhance your career prospects or retrain for a new career? Want to find out more about the University of Teesside? Then come to the University which is hosting two special open events for mature learners (over 21 years of age).

Tuesday 18 May (9am until 3.30pm) - Find Out More, registration at the Course Information Centre at the Middlesbrough Tower, off Borough Road, Middlesbrough.

The Find Out More open day is an open invite to all older people considering returning to education. Held as part of Adult Learners Week (Saturday 15 - Friday 21 May), the national celebration of all forms of adult learning, Find Out More offers the chance to tour the campus, learn about the courses on offer and have any questions about the University answered. Sessions run throughout the day - people attending the event will not have to be at the University all day.

To book a place to attend the Find Out More, call 01642 384277, or email courseinfo@tees.ac.uk

Wednesday 19 May (6.15pm until 9pm) - Foundation Degree Open Evening, at Clarendon Building, off Southfield Road, Middlesbrough

Foundation degrees are new qualifications, developed in partnership with employers, and are especially useful for people who are already in employment and are looking to increase their skills. The Open Evening features presentations from all the academic subject areas including Business & Management, Design & Media, Tourism & Leisure, Education, Engineering, Health & Social Care, Computing and Performing Arts.

Foundation degrees are taught at partner Colleges of Further Education throughout the region and at the University. The event may also be of interest to employers, training providers and careers advisers.

To book a place at the Open Evening or to find out more about the event, call the University of Teesside’s Centre for Lifelong Learning on 01642 384254 or email recruit@tees.ac.uk

Sharon Stephenson is one adult learner who has shown how returning to study can pay off

Sharon is studying the Foundation degree in Early Years, which is endorsed by SureStart and is appropriate for assistants who currently work in Early Years education (children aged from zero up to eight), and childcare (students must have access to children aged between three and eight). Successful completion of the course leads to Senior Practitioner status.

Sharon, 32, from Hartlepool will complete her Foundation Degree at Hartlepool College of Further Education this summer. She has worked as a Nursery Nurse at St. Patrick’s RC School in Fairfield, Stockton, for 13 years.

Sharon said: “I always wanted to work with primary school children. When I first qualified as a Nursery Nurse I was determined to get work and wrote to 52 schools. I love the work, and when I saw the teachers in the classroom I started to think that I could also enjoy that job. I knew I needed to study to progress but didn’t want to give up my job. I started to look at what courses I could combine with work, and a friend who works at The Grange Primary in Hartlepool told me about the Foundation degree in Early Years. The School Governors have given me every Thursday afternoon off for the last two years to attend college, and I received around £900 of funding every year through SureStart, totaling nearly £2,000 over the course.”

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