After taking my A Levels at Cirencester College the last thing I wanted to do was to go on to spend three years studying for a degree. I decided to get a full time job in the career field I had always wanted to work in - media communications. I was lucky enough to get the first full-time job I applied for - in the press and PR department of a local company. I enjoyed it at first - and it was nice to be earning while my student friends were trying to make ends meet. 
The last thing I wanted to do was to go on to spend three years studying for a degree. | | Kelly Archer |
But after spending two years in the job and hearing of all the fun my friends were having at their universities - and their academic achievements - it really did make me think long and hard for the first time whether I had made the best choice for my future. In January 2003 I decided to apply to University of Gloucestershire just to be safe as if I had missed the deadline I couldn't later change my mind to go there in September. I applied for Media Communications and Film Studies at Pittville Campus in Cheltenham. This would mean I could save money by commuting from home each day rather than living in. Hardest choices On receiving an unconditional offer in April I decided to accept my place. This has been one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. At the beginning of September I left behind the nice wage packet and job security and went back into education, to university. The main deciding factor was the fact that if I was to go back to the same job I would be earning a considerable amount more just for having a degree.
The main deciding factor was the fact that if I was to go back to the same job I would be earning a considerable amount more just for having a degree. | | Kelly Archer |
I have found in my first few months just how much more you can learn and just how much you can forget in two years - things like structuring your work, even writing grammar correctly! Going back to being a student has had its benefits such as having a NUS card and getting discount at top high street shops and top clubs in Cheltenham and further afield. I have taken on a part-time job to help on petrol because travelling 200 miles each week can be costly. By having two years of work experience under my belt before going to uni I feel that I have a more mature approach to my work. I am also better at meeting deadlines - because I had to work to them in my job - and I can complete assignments more quickly. I have learned another valuable life lesson too - it hasn't been easy but I am now better at making ends meet moneywise. 
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