Case Study-Stephan Stewart

I was working as a painter in IT Tallaght when I noticed a poster for an evening course in Community Addiction Studies. I was nervous about not fitting in as a mature student (I was 30 at the time) but I decided to go for it. The course was one year long, one evening a week and I loved it.

When it ended I knew I wanted to do more; I had no Leaving Cert and so I had to do a college access course. I enrolled in the Return to Learning course in NUI Maynooth (NUIM). The course was absolutely brilliant; and making the commitment two mornings a week was easy thanks to the class and the great support we gave each other. I looked at is as a sort of Provisional License.

I knew I wanted to get a degree to increase my chances of getting a job. I decided on a Media course at NUIM, for which I needed to do an entrance exam and interview. Although I fell at the first fence, I applied through CAO the next year and was successful. The first few days I was pinching myself, thinking I’m here to participate and not to paint, but then the real work began! I finished my last exam two weeks ago and have recently been accepted to a Masters programme in Public Policy & Advocacy Skills in NUI Galway which I’m starting in September.

Without the courses there’s no way I’d be here today. I thought education was for other people and these kinds of opportunities would never come to me.  Five years ago I had little self-confidence yet now I believe I can achieve anything. My ultimate aspiration would be to act on behalf of organisations that promote positive change, something like education equality provision or the reduction of fees for adults wishing to return to education; a topic that is dear to my heart!