Student nurse overcomes her own challenges to bag first class degree

AN inspirational student has overcome her own challenges to achieve outstanding academic grades at the Warrington Campus of the University of Chester.
Shezz Jordan, 35, initially suspended studying for a degree in Nursing after struggling with undiagnosed ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
But following a six-month break, during which she received a formal diagnosis, she returned to study Mental Health Nursing at the Warrington Campus and impressed her lecturers with consistently high grades and a passion for her studies, resulting in the award of a First Class degree.
Shezz said that receiving the diagnosis “made an absolutely amazing difference to my entire experience at university”.
She added: “I can now concentrate and engage with lectures and I’ve discovered an enjoyment for academic writing which I had hated before because I couldn’t sit and concentrate.
“It has made such a massive difference to my time on placement too and I have learned so much since I have come back. I’m able to engage better with staff and patients and it makes the whole experience so much more enjoyable for me as well as the fact that I can provide better patient care.
“Being diagnosed made so many things in my life make sense. I don’t see having ADHD as a hindrance to becoming a nurse – I’m empathetic, quick-thinking, gentle and able to build up therapeutic relationships well with patients. If anyone is worried that having ADHD would hold them back from being able to do this – it won’t – you just have a different skill-set which is just as important.”
Shezz said that the support she felt all the way through her student journey played a major part in helping her to achieve her dreams, especially the university’s disability services team and her lecturers, who enabled her return to her studies.
Laura Duncan, senior lecturer in Mental Health Nursing, said: “I believe Shezz is an advocate and role model for those experiencing any form of neurodiversity or learning difference. Shezz’s academic work in her third year of study has been of exceptional quality, frequently achieving grades in the 80s for her work.
“Having known Shezz in her first year before interrupting her studies and seeing how far she has developed and grown as an individual is remarkable. Shezz is a delight to teach, is engaged and asks insightful and interesting questions that help the whole group to develop more in-depth and interesting discussions. Shezz has demonstrated a passion for mental health and is an inspiration to other students.”
Shezz now plans to further her studies with a Master’s in Mental Health Sciences.