I have a new found confidence in my academic ability which I credit to the tutor Steve.

Nick Tovey has recently completed our Gateway to HE course and is about to start the part-time Social Studies degree. Here he shares his journey into Higher Education.

I left Secondary School in 2003 with two E grade A level results not feeling like I was ready to go to University. I had not tried as hard as I could have in my second year of A levels and went into the world of work. This has always been a regret as I know that I had the potential to go on and do a degree. I have worked in café management most of my working life, working my way up through the ranks from supervisor to manager. I have always enjoyed the training element of this job and seeing people grow as it has always been an aspiration of mine to become a Secondary school teacher. When I worked for SSP they wanted to put me on a development programme which could have lead to me having a degree in business. This was the moment I felt that if I were going to study, it would be something I would enjoy and work towards a rewarding career.

My plan since I was 28 was to start working towards becoming a history teacher. I have always been interested in history and politics and the idea that history repeats itself throughout the centuries. I did a part of the history certificate in 2014 however I struggled with the work and I was experiencing financial difficulty. I really enjoyed learning again and was determined not to give up on my dream.

When I got onto Gateway this March, I felt that I learnt the skills I needed to go onto an undergraduate degree. I have a new found confidence in my academic ability which I credit to the tutor Steve. Gateway was the best course to get back into education as the way it builds skills ready for University. It can be daunting coming back to education after a time away from School or College. I think Steve teaching the course is perfect as he has been through the same process as we are all going through. Steve’s passion for Sociology really inspired me to go on and learn more about the subject. (I changed my major from history to sociology as I was so interested in the subject and the workings of society). I have always been interested in the way society works and learning about thinkers, such as Illich and Bauman, has made me go on to choose a major in Sociology.

My ambition remains to teach and go onto a PGCE after completing the part time degree. If I could help, as Steve has with me, a person achieve their goals through teaching it would be a rewarding career and worth completing my academic journey at Warwick.