A Nursing graduate from De Montfort University (DMU) Leicester who was inspired to train after looking after her disabled mother at home has won a full-time job doing what she loves.
Sarah Lindsay said it was the skills and real-world experience she received on her Nursing with Registration course that stood her apart from the crowd and helped her start a job as a staff nurse only a month after finishing the course.
Graduating this January with a first, she actually finished her course in September 2015 and since October has been working as a staff nurse for the charity which cares for people with learning disabilities and mental health issues.
She landed the role just before Christmas 2014 after details of a recruitment day were posted to the jobs blackboard by lecturers and she impressed at her interview, talking about vital experience she'd gained while studying at DMU.
"I worked for 10-weeks in a local special educational needs school in Hinckley and learned lots of ways to communicate with youngster with special needs, which was really good fun."
She also had placements at an independent care provider - which offered supported living, day care provision and work opportunities for people with learning disabilities - and a rehabilitation unit in Leicester, helping to reintroduce people who had been institutionalised for a long time back into everyday life. "I got to appreciate the therapeutic value of going for a coffee and doing your own laundry."
Sarah originally got a drama degree from university in the north west of England but with a history of working for the caring professions in the family - including social workers and teachers - it is perhaps inevitable that she came to realise she'd missed her true calling: "I helped to care for my mum from the age of 10 and I've always been a people person. I guess you can't fight it!"
She threw herself into life at DMU, becoming a brand ambassador and course rep, helping out at open days, attending committee meetings for staff and students, taking part in programme management forums, and acting as a peer advocate during a recent review of her course.
She also took part in a research project looking at parents with learning disabilities and the best way to support them and their children so they can stay together as families.
"I live in Rugby so the university was relatively near to me and friends who'd been here told me how much they'd enjoyed it. It very quickly came to feel like home and I've met lots of like-minded people who I know are going to be lifelong friends. All the tutors' pastoral and academic support has been top notch."
"I've loved every minute of being at DMU and meeting so many others who see the world the same way I do. Sometimes it seems like society doesn't value or appreciate how much hard work goes into caring for vulnerable people - hopefully I can help to change that."
Posted on Thursday 28 January 2016