Mature student Geraldine had worked in various jobs throughout the years including retail, receptionist in a GP surgery and admin in the civil service and later a local charity, but had never managed to settle and find her true calling. She had always wanted to work in healthcare but was unsure about which field to choose. At the age of 28 she decided to take action,
“My A-Levels were not in science subjects so I applied to study the Access Diploma in Biomedical Science part-time in the evenings at Belfast Met, to allow me to gain entry to university. At the outset of the Access course, I was still unsure what exactly I wanted to do. Then one day I had to have a CT brain scan and got into conversation with the Radiographer. Her passion for the job was contagious and I began looking into it. The rest, as they say, is history!”
As a single mother Geraldine had to balance her studies with a busy home life caring for her daughter,
“Studying and raising a child is certainly not easy but getting to see how proud my daughter is of my achievements makes the struggle so worthwhile. I purposefully put off my return to education until my daughter was settled in grammar school, hoping that she would be more independent, thus allowing me to dedicate more time to my studies. I tip my hat to those parents who return when their children are younger. That takes real determination.”
Geraldine has really enjoyed her time at Ulster and the relationships and friendships she has made during her 3 year course.
“The highlight for me has been the relationships formed along the way with other students and professionals both in university and on clinical placement. I got so much motivation and inspiration through interacting with others.”
After a well-deserved rest over the summer Geraldine will be returning to Ulster University in September to start her PhD looking at the impact of Artificial Intelligence on clinical decision making in images of the appendicular skeleton.