On Monday 8^th July we had a talk from a former SSSO student called Doreen. She is a midwifery student who is in her second year at Kingston University. Doreen gave us an interesting talk about the A-level subjects she had chosen and how they have benefitted her in university. She then went on to talk about applying for university and the ‘usual’ plus additional information that universities tend to look for when looking at the applications of future students. Doreen also gave advice to the people who were thinking about taking a gap year and the things that they can do during that year that will benefit them. Her talk focused on midwifery and she explained her experiences and first thoughts about when she first started the course. She mentioned that within a few weeks of starting the course she went on work placement and was required to do 12 hour shifts. Midwifery students have to work long hours to get future midwives into their role and actually being ‘hands on’ the job. Also, having work experience helped clarify some of the things that she had been learning from her lecturers.

Whilst she is on her placement she has to shadow a qualified midwife and follow their work rota. The qualified midwife is there to help her and guide her. Doreen explained that she also gets visits from her supervisor at university; they come and complete assessments on her, as well as ensuring that everything is fine. I found Doreen’s talk really informative and I gained more of an insight into the role of a Midwife. I am now aware that there is so much more to the role than just being in a delivery room helping a woman give birth. Doreen also opened up my eyes to the range of universities that I can apply to and she inspired me to, hopefully, be a great candidate in the future.

Latifah Kabenge