Student Parents
Guidance and information for our students who are also parents.
Introduction
The information contained on this website is intended to provide you with some key guidance points to help you navigate university life. The content has been produced in collaboration between staff and students alike. To begin with, some inspiring reflections from a recent graduate on her experiences as an undergraduate student.
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‘As I sit here typing this on a Friday evening in an unusually quiet house and after the first full week of being back in school this year, I look back and reflect on my time in university with true fondness. I am a graduate of the University of Edinburgh although, as I write, I have not officially graduated in McEwan Hall as I am part of the class of 2020.
I am a wife and mother of three and attending university was a real juggle. I have written essays at the side of a swimming pool (during swimming training and synchro competitions), in the car on the way to rugby games, grabbing any opportunity whilst still completing mum duties. My family knew how important it was to me to fulfil my true vocation in life to become a primary teacher. As a miner’s daughter, I also would be the first person in my family to go to university and get a degree, all of that at the ripe old age of 45! I wanted to make my family proud and persevered through tough times in that 4 years, being diagnosed dyslexic at the end of 1st year made handing in my final dissertation all the sweeter. I
had done it, being organised was key, lots of batch cooking to stock up the freezer, using the time between lectures and workshops to get as much work done as possible. Find likeminded friends and support each other through the good times and the tough times, as there will be those. Be resilient and seek support if you need it, your personal tutor is there for you and without mine, I would have not sought the help I needed with a diagnosis of dyslexia. Do not let barriers stand in the way - knock them down. Be determined and follow your dreams if I can do it anyone can! I am looking forward to my graduation day and getting that all important photo for the wall!’