Personal Statement - Preapring to move on

I volunteered for a disabled people’s charity and was coaxed into contacting John Rowley – Additional Support Officer – at Northern College. I attended college in January 2008 to partake confidence building and assertiveness course, which proved very fruitful in my personal development. From that day onwards, I found that I longed to pursue inner fulfilment and found the desire to discover more about the way my thought processes work, how I react, how my actions affect others and how their actions affect me. Since January 2008, I have completed numerous self-development and academic short courses at Northern College and have enrolled on an access to higher education diploma in social sciences.

I am enthusiastic and passionate about the Counselling & Helping Skills module on the diploma programme. It’s a subject that is close to my heart and there is a lot I could learn more about. I have a natural ability to help and support people, and I get a sense of joy when I do so. I would like to further my knowledge to benefit not only myself, but to benefit others also.

Studying IT Essentials offered me the opportunity to maintain, repair and diagnose my own computer and provided me with skills necessary to help others. The Social Sciences diploma has extended my knowledge in the field of helping and supporting people. Academic skills sessions have helped me learn academic conventions and standards for creating notes, essay plans and essays and provided me with the knowledge to structure an essay that is informative and interesting to the reader. It has also provided me with the skills needed to undertake a successful research project to aid in accomplishing requirements set down by my tutors.

Ideally, I would like to gain employment in a support environment such as health, social work or counselling work. I have worked in environments where I have supported others. Most recently, this was as Administration Officer for a funded community regeneration partnership. Although my main role was administration, I had the opportunity to interact with members of the community at open days, drop-in sessions and door to door visits. I also had the opportunity to work with people on a higher level by attending Council meetings, events and training sessions. I took minutes for these meeting and was also asked to take minutes for external meetings because my minutes were of such a high standard and very informative without containing irrelevant information. I am a responsible person, but don’t take myself too seriously. I was given the responsibility of being a key holder for the organisation and I was the trained first aider.

I volunteer for a disabled person’s charity in Doncaster, where I interact with people on a daily basis both in person and over the telephone. I am the volunteer coordinator and it is my role to ensure that the volunteers are doing the job they are required to do whilst ensuring that they are happy and receiving the training they need. I hold regular chats with the volunteers to ensure that they are happy about the way I am managing them, they are happy about the work they are doing, they are happy about the organisation and to ask what suggestions they have to improve things or what training they would like.

The greatest achievement in my life has attaining a place on the diploma programme. The diploma programme itself has given me achievement opportunities; I have been able to socially interact successfully with fellow students and tutors, I have been able to request help and support when I need it and my confidence has increased immensely.

Other achievements I have accomplished include learning the basics of playing guitar, writing and composing some of my own songs and feeling a sense of satisfaction that friends and family have taken comfort in those songs.

I am visually impaired and need additional support. I am blind in my left eye and partially sighted in my right. I received exceptional support at northern college, and would not have made it this without it.

I still suffer from depression, on medication, but I’m confident, stronger and positive than I have ever been. The diploma programme has added to this.