“I left school at 16 and had the chance to come to UCD as a mature student after receiving a scholarship. I really benefited and got a lot out of my own university experience. I made good friends and thoroughly enjoyed the course content. As a result, I wanted to give back to another student to make sure they are also able to have a similar university experience.

I completed my Bachelor’s in Social Science and then went on to do multiple degrees between the years of 2007 and 2022 including a Masters degree in Literature as a mature student.

I think my advice to mature students is to realise that even if we left school at a young age, our brains are intact, and our desire to succeed will show us that the sky is the limit to our achievements. I have so many happy memories from my time in UCD including getting to know really well the other three mature students, and how we remained friends throughout the course. The years at UCD were incredibly happy, and I just feel so grateful to have got that chance in life to do what I was unable to do earlier.”