How did I Decide to go to University?

Ever since I was little I would always play pretend schools with my friends. One of us would pretend to be the teacher and the others would be the students. We’d play for hours; enjoying the novelty of writing on a whiteboard and demanding that the ‘children’ listen, thinking that was what it was all about… Oh! How wrong we were…

I was always told I’d make a good a teacher and genuinely enjoyed helping people to achieve their targets; whether it be at gymnastics or at school. I never really thought of any other career path; for me, teaching was the only career I wanted to pursue.

All the way through school, I thought it was inevitable that, should I get my place, I’d go to University to study to become a Primary Teacher.

However, by the time I reached year 12 and started to stress about my Professional Skills Tests I started to have second thoughts. I was struggling to pass my maths test, and at the time if you failed 3 times you had wait 2 years before trying again! Luckily this has now changed and you can book additional resits if required.  But at the time if you didn’t pass the tests; you couldn’t go to Uni to study Primary Ed. Simple.

So there I was, stressing 24/7 when my Mum told me that it wasn’t the end of the world and maybe I should look into other options, just in case. So I did.

I was told about TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and before I knew it, I’d booked myself on to do the 6 month course by the time I’d finished my A-levels.

Just after I’d signed myself up, I went to take my 3rd and final attempt of my maths QTS test, as I figured I had nothing to lose and I only went and passed it! Typical!

So there I was; booked onto a TEFL course and passed my QTS test with a secure place at the University of Worcester (Yay Worcester). Suddenly, I had options.

With advice and opinions from several others including: Mum, Dad, boyfriend and teachers, I decided to defer my University place and pursue a Gap Year; 6 months studying TEFL and 6 months living in Spain teaching English.

BEST DECISION EVER! I’d gained so much from taking a year out and I don’t regret it one bit! Check out my ‘To Gap Year or not to Gap Year‘ Blog for more information on what I did in my year out.

Now, here I am at University studying what I’ve always wanted to!