"I used to think nursing was a closed door for me. Qualvera opened it."
The Challenge
I'd wanted to be a nurse for as long as I could remember. Growing up, I'd watch my grandmother care for people in our community — she had this way of making everyone feel seen, feel valued. That's what I wanted to do. Not just help people when they were ill, but really be there for them.
But life had other plans. I left school at 18 without the A-levels I needed for a nursing degree. I got pregnant with my first daughter at 21, then my son came along two years later. I ended up working as a healthcare assistant at my local hospital — which I loved, genuinely loved — but it wasn't the same. I was assisting nurses every day, watching them do the work I dreamed of doing, and I couldn't shake the feeling that I was on the wrong side of a door I didn't know how to open.
The biggest barrier wasn't motivation. It was logistics. I'm a single mum. I work shifts. I don't have family nearby who can just pick the kids up. Going to a physical college three days a week? Absolutely impossible. I looked at a few local Access courses, but they all wanted classroom attendance. One even said I'd need to arrange childcare for evening exams. It felt like the system was designed for people whose lives looked nothing like mine.
The Solution
I found Qualvera through a Facebook group for healthcare workers. Someone had posted about doing their Access to HE completely online, and I thought — there's no way that's legit. But I looked it up, saw it was accredited, and read a few other stories from learners. I signed up the same week.
The thing that made the biggest difference was the flexibility. I'm not talking about "you can watch lectures at any time" kind of flexibility — every online course says that. I mean genuinely being able to structure my entire study week around my children's schedules. I'd do reading while they were at school, write assignments during my lunch break at work, and use the study assistant at midnight after they were asleep.
The study assistant became my secret weapon, honestly. At midnight, when you can't exactly ring a tutor, I'd type in whatever I was stuck on — anatomy concepts, essay structure, referencing — and it would explain things clearly, patiently, as many times as I needed. It never made me feel stupid for asking. That sounds like a small thing, but when you've been out of education for over a decade, it matters enormously.
My assessor was brilliant too. She understood that some weeks I'd submit three pieces of work, and other weeks I'd go quiet because one of the kids was ill or I'd picked up extra shifts. She never made me feel guilty. She'd just say, "When you're ready, I'm here." That support — that patience — is what got me through.
The Result
I finished my Access to HE Diploma in 11 months. Eleven months — from someone who genuinely believed she'd never study again. I got distinctions in most of my units, which I still can't quite believe.
I applied to three universities for BSc Nursing. I got offers from all three. I accepted a place at a Russell Group university that starts this September. When the acceptance email came through, I cried at my kitchen table. My daughter asked what was wrong, and I said, "Nothing's wrong. Everything's finally right."
The cost was manageable too. £69.99 a month — less than my phone contract and Netflix combined. No massive upfront fee, no student loan for the Access course itself. I just paid monthly, and when I was done, I was done. For the nursing degree, I'll get the NHS Learning Support Fund, so financially the path forward is clear.
To anyone reading this who's in the same position I was — working in healthcare, wanting more, but not seeing how — I promise you the door isn't closed. You just haven't found the right key yet. Qualvera was mine.