“The Access to HE Diploma has genuinely changed my life”: How East Sussex College is breaking down barriers to higher education
For many people, the journey to university does not always follow a traditional route.
Lots of adults return to education after many years away from the classroom. Their motivation might be to change careers or work towards achieving something they’ve always wanted to do. Either way, an online Access to Higher Education (HE) Diploma can help them gain the skills, confidence and support they need to begin studying at university.
At East Sussex College, online Access to HE courses offer adults a flexible route into higher education, allowing them to study in their own time around their existing commitments.
Through a combination of academic study, specialist subject knowledge and dedicated support from experienced lecturers, learners develop the skills needed to succeed at university and beyond.
For former online Access to HE students, Sandar Win, Valeria Abbrescia, Stephanie Stacey and Katie Sanderson, the course has helped realise what was possible.
Building confidence for university study
After completing her online Access to HE Diploma in Nursing, Sandar Win progressed to a BSc (Hons) Adult Nursing degree at the University of Brighton.
Studying online allowed Sandar to complete her qualification flexibly while developing the knowledge and skills needed for higher education.
“This course was a challenge, but it was all worth it,” said Sandar, reflecting on her experience. “I have learned a lot, which will enable me to get off to a good start at university. I didn’t know what to expect before I began, but the quality of the course was so high, particularly when it came to the support from the lecturers. The detailed feedback was especially valuable.”
The online Access to HE Diploma helped Sandar prepare for the demands of university study, giving her the academic foundation and confidence to progress into nursing.
A route to achieving a lifelong ambition
For Valeria Abbrescia and Stephanie Stacey, the online Access to HE Diploma provided the opportunity to pursue ambitions that once felt out of reach.
For Valeria Abbrescia, the online Access to HE Diploma in Veterinary Medicine provided the opportunity to pursue a lifelong ambition of becoming a veterinary surgeon.
Having already achieved a degree in Marketing and built a career in the industry, Valeria returned to education while working full time. The course helped her rebuild her academic confidence and develop the skills needed to apply for one of the UK’s most competitive degree programmes.
Following completion of her online Access to HE Diploma, Valeria received offers to study Veterinary Medicine from both the University of Surrey and the University of Bristol.
Valeria said, “The Access to HE Diploma has genuinely changed my life. Before starting the course, pursuing a degree in Veterinary Medicine felt like an ambition that was out of reach.
“The Access to HE Diploma completely changed that mindset. It gave me the confidence to believe in myself again and showed me that changing careers was not only possible but achievable.”
Through the course, Valeria developed key skills including scientific writing, independent research, critical thinking, time management and the ability to balance a demanding workload.
“Perhaps the greatest impact the course had was on my confidence,” Valeria continued. “By successfully completing challenging assignments and assessments, I realised that I was capable of studying at a high academic level again.”
After recently completing her online Access to HE Diploma in Art & Design, Stephanie Stacey is progressing to the part-time MA Fine Art programme at Birmingham City University this autumn.
Stephanie had previously completed a degree in Psychology, but art had always been a lifelong passion. She decided to return to education to explore a creative career and build the knowledge, skills and portfolio needed to pursue further study in Fine Art.
Through the Access to HE Diploma, Stephanie developed her artistic practice while learning how to research artists, reflect critically on her work and experiment with different ideas and techniques. The course also gave her the confidence to take the next step into postgraduate study.
Stephanie said: “The course challenged me creatively and gave me the confidence to experiment with different ideas, techniques and ways of thinking. It encouraged me to develop my own artistic voice while learning how to research artists, reflect critically on my work and build a portfolio.”
Completing the diploma with Distinctions was one of Stephanie’s proudest achievements. With her previous degree in Psychology and the creative experience and portfolio developed through the Access to HE Diploma, she has now accepted a place on the part-time MA Fine Art at Birmingham City University, where she will continue developing her practice as an artist.
Supporting learners to reach their potential
Katie Sanderson completed the online Access to HE Science Diploma before progressing to study BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science at Northumbria University.
Katie explained that she’d not followed a traditional education route and found the course helped her develop the confidence and academic skills needed to progress into higher education.
“As someone who did not go the traditional education route and as a mature student it really helped me with my independent learning and confidence in believing in myself and that at any age you can achieve anything you wish if you just have that drive and motivation.”
Like Valeria, the course helped Katie strengthen the academic and independent learning skills needed for university, while also building the confidence to advocate for herself and access the support she needed.
She added, “It’s taught me to never give up hope even when times get tough and now I aced my offer of 96 tariff points and came out with 134 tariff points. I've now got my unconditional 4-year clinical biomedical science degree with a placement year.”
Start your journey with East Sussex College
Whether you are looking to progress to university, change careers or achieve a goal you have always dreamed of, an online Access to HE Diploma can provide the foundation you need.
With flexible study options, including online learning, and courses starting in September, October and November, East Sussex College helps adults gain the confidence, skills and qualifications needed to take their next step.
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