My name is Sophie Rahim. I am from Luton and studied an undergraduate degree in Social Work via Clearing, starting in 2017.

I had been given the opportunity of voluntary redundancy from a previous job and had worked in the area of safeguarding in unqualified support roles for a number of years. I had always wanted to become a social worker but I felt I couldn’t manage as a single parent, running a house and studying all at once. Voluntary redundancy gave me the chance to apply to university.

I had a positive Clearing experience and had an interview and course offer within three weeks. There was also the opportunity to explore funding support through the University which made my concerns about personal circumstances to disappear.

I was fortunate to have very supportive lecturers. I was anxious about returning to study at age 40, describing myself a non-academic. Despite this, with the support of the on-campus study hub, excellent peer support and regular meetings with my personal tutor, I was able to achieve a first class honours degree! The library access and Student Support on offer is available to those that require it, and I was also signposted to access additional bursary support.

Studying at the University of Bedfordshire really was a family experience and allowed me to raise the aspirations of my children. There were events at the University that we were all able to attend.

Be yourself and enjoy the time and space to learn for you. The course I studied gave me the opportunity to make friendships I will have for life. Four years after the course has finished, we still speak weekly – generally keeping in touch and enjoying hearing about opportunities that studying at Bedfordshire has enabled us to have.

Don’t delay – my only regret is why I didn’t choose to study sooner. I tell everyone about my experiences at the University including my 21 year old son who was considering moving away at 18 to study. However after knowing the support that I was given he decided to choose Bedfordshire and he too is now about to graduate with a good degree.

It is incredible to believe I graduated in 2019 and now – four years later – I am a manager in a social care team where my salary has doubled in comparison to prior to my studies.