Health, social and childcare students from Warrington & Vale Royal College are preparing to take the next step towards their dream careers and university courses.
A number of students studying at the college have secured places to continue their studies at prestigious universities on courses including paramedic science, psychology, physiotherapy, paediatric nursing and primary teaching.
One of these students is 22 year old Stuart Johnson who will be starting a degree in physiotherapy this September.
Stuart said: “I came to Warrington & Vale Royal College to try and figure out what it was I wanted to do. Both my mum and sister are in the health and social care field and I didn’t feel like engineering or something like that was the right fit for me. I wanted to do something to help people in the future. After learning the different subjects and seeing what options I had available to me, physiotherapy felt like the thing for me.”
Stuart, a former Fairfield High School pupil, has received a conditional offer from York St John University, and also has an interview for Manchester Metropolitan University.
“I am really excited for university – I can’t wait. We’ve covered the basics of physiotherapy as part of the health and social care course. The majority of people who go on to study physiotherapy at university will have come from doing science A Level and whilst it’s obviously important to have that scientific knowledge, I feel like I’ll have an advantage because I’ve got the practical and caring side – that’s important too.”
Stuart added: “I have really enjoyed the course and my time at Warrington & Vale Royal College. I have enjoyed the different subjects and the opportunities that we’ve had, including going to Martos in Spain where we helped to look after people who didn’t speak any English. That was difficult but a great opportunity for us.”
As well as studying the level 3 course at Warrington & Vale Royal College, Stuart has also completed work placements at a special educational needs school and at Scope, where he also works.
Stuart commented: “The dream is to be a physiotherapist for a sports team, ideally working abroad, but the course at Warrington & Vale Royal College has given me the foundation for any health and social care career.’’
