Mature Student Dilemmas - Advice iro Midwifery needed

Edelstein

Hi all - I'm within a hair's breath of walking out of my current job.
This has been brewing for 5 years now. I work in the public sector as
an administrator and it's the most mind-numbing, soul-destroying
position imaginable. A little piece of me dies every day I'm at work.
What's kept me there this long was first of all securing a mortgage;
setting up home; getting married; and starting a family.


I have no background in health sciences, nursing, midwifery but have a
strong interest in this area and feel I'd like to pursure a career as
a midwife.


1.

My first question is whether the PLC pre-nursing courses provide a
good insight into life as a nurse/midwife. Unfortunately I've missed
the intake for September but am thinking ahead and am looking at the
course in the Liberties with the maternity module or alternatively the
pre-nursing course in Dundrum College.


2.

Secondly, if I take the bull by the horns and apply for midwifery as a
mature student, what are my chances of actually securing a permanent
job in Ireland on graduation?? This would be a huge deal for me
financially, personally etc. and I'm fearful that I may throw away a
good stable job to spend 4 years struggling and putting my family
through rough times only to be left qualified but unemployed at the
end of the process. Are there good prospects for midwives in Ireland?


3.

I know the application process for midwifery is tough. If I stay in my
job for now, what part-time/evening course options are available to
help me gain experience/knowledge (and confirmation that I would be
suited to the profession) in preparation for the interview/aptitude
testing??


OR


If I did quit my job, are there any positions open as care assistants
/ ward attendants in the maternity hospitals?? Most of the jobs I've
seen on the usual job web sites are for nursing homes, care of the
elderly etc.


4.

Finally, what is the course workload for a student midwife like?? I
have a 12-mth old daughter - is it feasible to get through the 4 years
as a Mammy?? The way I look on it now - I work 8 hours a day, 5 days a
week - how does that compare to the course schedule over the 4 years
of study?


I'm not afraid of hard work (just completed an MA while in full-time
work so have some insight into juggling job, study and baby - though
this was a distance-learning course) ... but I'd like to hear how
others out there have managed and whether it's a realistic scenario.


Thanks in advance for your advice


p.s. I'm 36 - what age are 'mature' nursing students in general??


E

mumtoe&e

Hey There,
I cannot answer all of your questions, but I can tell you my story.. so far!

I am about to start 2nd year Midwifery - as a Mature Student.

I too gave up a very secure, civil servant job, it was a huge decision and one that I didnt take lightly, I had many sleepless nights wondering if I was doing the right thing

I have two children ages 9 and 4 - and I will be 100% honest, I started Midwifery a year ago in sept of 2009 - and honestly it has been the toughest year of my life to date.

The hours are hectic if I am honest. College hours are not too horrific, but the time on placement is tough enough - well the college I attend, our placement hours are 7.30am - 8.30pm! my commute each day on top of this is 3.5hrs! The days which you are "off" you are not technically off as you are studying for exams and doing assignments!

You need a very supportive family, partner, husband etc. if you are serious about doing it!

Its not your average college course where you can sit back and be very relaxed about it all - especially when you have children - organisation and determination are the key!!!!

Will there be jobs for us when we qualify? Well who knows - the way things are going now - no there wont be - but who knows, nobody can really look into the future, but we can just hope and pray that things improve before we graduate.

You have to be 100% certain that this is what you definitely want to do.

With all the negatives, I still love it, as there are so many positives, I am actually dying to go back to college in September! I think being with a woman when her baby enters the world has got to be one of the most amazing jobs ever, but its not all a bed of roses, unless you walk in the shoes of a nurse or a midwife I dont think you ever fully understand the true extent of the workload they carry - I know I never did until I seen it for myself.

Still, it is an amazing profession, and I highly recommend it - but ONLY if you are 100% certain it is what you want to do!

You will need lots of family support because you have a child!

If you have any questions pm me!!

I love it - so far so good!

tfak85

hi edelstein,
i think mumtoe&e really summed it up there, the placement hours are very long and you can end up doing nights and weekends (i'm in a different uni/hospital to her, maybe they don't do nights in NMH).

if you think midwifery is for you you could try to get into a prenursing course with a maternity module, like the one you mentioned in the liberties, i know those students spend some time in the rotunda (it may just be care assistant students however)...

you could also try and get onto a care assistant course, there are some full time ones but i know with nurse on call you can do a four day course and it covers you to work in hospitals and nursing home, this may seem like alot of trouble but i think some people starting the course benefit for spending time in a hospital...

there are plenty of mature students with children who do very well on the midwifery, as mumtoe&e pointed out a supportive family, husband/partner is essential but it is possible, i know a friend of mine with quite a few children just got a 1st for her first year....
us mature students support each other, we send each other hints and tips on finding things for assignments etc.

i know all of this these decisions are made so much harder when you have children/mortgage etc but if you can just think about what midwifery means to you, what you feel the job entails, why you feel you would be suited to it and see if it helps you come to a conclusion..
a lovely and somewhat idealistic read i can recommend to you is spiritual midwifery by ina may gaskin... perhaps you have read it already, while not all of the stories will apply to those of us who plan to work in hospitals there is alot about true midwifery in there...

hope this very rambly post helped you somewhat....

mumtoe&e

Tfak85 is dead right recommending a Health Care Assistant course - to give you a taste of what it is all like!

I have wanted to do Midwifery ever since I had my first child 9 years ago - but I have always worked in an office, had never worked in a hospital in my life.

I took a career break from my civil service job after I had my daughter - and it was while I was on that Career break that I decided to try get a job as a Health Care Assistant - I had zero experience, so I was lucky that I found a local hospital who took me on - it was not Maternity - It was elderly, but I figured any kind of experience in a hospital would help me, and give me a tiny insight into what it is all about.

It will be very tough to find a job as a healthcare assistant now with the way things are - but I would definitely recommend doing the course in the Liberties, I know a few of the healthcare assistants in the hospital I train in did the course, and loved it! Some decide to progress on to Midwifery, whilst others are happy to work as a Maternity Healthcare Assistant!

Best of Luck with your decision! Its not an easy one!

TERRIC

Hi Tfak85

Do you know how the exams are marked in Trinity? How are papers are marked in order to get a 1st or whatever.... Is it overall between theory and placement or how does it work? Also, I dread to ask but, is there a high pass/fail rate for mature students? Is it 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2 or pass - what do these mean? As long as I pass, I'm happy - must be mammoth effort as a mature with kids to get 1st... I'm in awe.

tfak85

hi terric,
grades over the whole year are collected to give you a final mark.
each assignment has a weighting on the particular subject and each subject has a weighting on the final year grade, it's kind of hard to grasp, the one thing to remember is: get 50% in each to pass and you're sorted.
i know, she really is amazing, she is going to make a fantastic midwife too!

terric are you starting the course in trinity this year? feel free to pm me any questions.

Edelstein

Thanks for the advice and info everyone!!

mumtoe&e - well done on making it through the first year - especially with such a long commute on top of all the pressure!

If I think about the reality of the hours, I'm just not sure I have enough of a support network to back me up at the moment. We're still reeling after a tragic family bereavement so I'm not sure it's fair of me to ask any more of my family for now.

The thing is though that the loss of my loved one reminds me of the brevity of life and the importance of chasing my dream. Maybe I just need to park the idea for a couple of years until we've all had a chance to get over this tough time and move on.

tfak85 - thanks too for your input. I have Ina May Gaskin's book here at home and read it after my little girl was born - I'm fascinated by everything to do with the subject! I plan on going to the open days for the Liberties course next Feb and Dundrum and Inchicore as a backup plan too. I'll google the nurse on call 4-day course - sounds like another good option and it would be a quick way out of my job if my feelings towards the place continue to deteriorate.

Ideally I'd love it if I could get a career break from work - give the Liberties course a go and then I'd know for sure whether to pursue midwifery ... while still having my job as a safety net. But I have a wagon of a boss - who refuses to grant any of the usual public service benefits (I can't even use my parental leave on a day-a-week basis - but that's a story for another post).

Maybe my situation will be a little easier next year .... in the meantime, I'll keep on dreaming ...................................

Good luck with the upcoming year of study everyone!

E

p.s. if anyone has any other suggestions on healthcare related jobs to help me escape my current job without having to commit 4 years to study, I'd love to hear them. I know in UK and in the US there are openings for 'assistant' jobs eg. Physio Assistant, OT Assistant, Speech and Language Therapy Assistant but I've never come across these positions here in Ireland. I've noticed that the Portobello College does night courses in these areas but am a little sceptical that there are any openings. Just a thought .....

Laydee

Edelstein, it's not too late to apply for a pre nursing course, I applied to Marino college around 15th August last year & had my interview on the 6th September. I started the course on 16th September so there is still time.
You don't necessarily need a maternity module to be a HCA in a maternity hospital but you do need the FETAC level 5 cert. The rotunda take on Pre nursing students for work experience but you need to be there with your letter the day they're given to you because the competition is fierce.

Edelstein

Just to update ....

tfak85 thanks so much about the nurse on call suggestion. I'm looking into doing the course in Sept (it's now 8 days) and hope to get lots of experience and a good insight into nursing.

Have applied for some time off work - unpaid - but am not hopeful about that ... am thinking of taking parental leave of 8 weeks. You're not supposed to work while on parental but think I'll take the risk.

wdmfapq4zs83hv

Im resurrecting this thread as I could have written the ops post! I have been working in the financial sector since I left school, in my early 30s now with two small kids but would love to look into this area. Would be very interested even in the healthcare assistant course in the Liberties. Has anyone done this? What kind of work could you expect to get out of this? And actuallyare there any jobs out there at the moment? I would absolutely love to work in something relating to pregnancy/ babies/ reproductive health so any suggestions would be great. Thanks

carol9709

Patrick Square Armada wrote: »

Im resurrecting this thread as I could have written the ops post! I have been working in the financial sector since I left school, in my early 30s now with two small kids but would love to look into this area. Would be very interested even in the healthcare assistant course in the Liberties. Has anyone done this? What kind of work could you expect to get out of this? And actuallyare there any jobs out there at the moment? I would absolutely love to work in something relating to pregnancy/ babies/ reproductive health so any suggestions would be great. Thanks

Would LOVE to know how you got on with this!! I'm a similar position myself and am a little apprehensive about leaving my job before I know what I'd be getting myself into!

Thank you,