English and Maths Open Doors to Nursing.
My name is Marlene Benigno Pearce, and I am originally from the Philippines. I worked as a school nurse in Doha, Qatar, for six years, from 2011 to 2017. I met my husband in Qatar, we married in 2016, and I moved to the UK in 2017 to join him. For my first two years, I had the opportunity to visit various places around the UK and did part-time jobs in different healthcare settings.
In the summer of 2019, I received a letter about Adult Community Learning programmes and got interested in enrolling in an English course. On the day of enrolment, I was assessed and took the initial assessment test on the same day and was luckily accepted into a Functional Skills English Level 2 class. It was a wonderful experience being back at school and socialising with different people. After gaining the English qualification in 2020, I applied for a healthcare assistant position at St. Cross Hospital Rugby. During that period, I enrolled in Functional Skills Maths Level 2 and gained my qualification in 2021. Some of my Trust colleagues encouraged me to return to nursing practice.
Fortunately, Coventry University has opened a new curriculum for the MSc Adult Nursing Blended (Pre-Registration) programme for healthcare workers with previous degrees and experience in a healthcare setting. This MSc Adult Nursing Blended will be running for two years and be able to qualify for registry in NMC after completion of the course. To prepare for this course, their initial assessment requires the Functional Skills English and Maths qualifications, and I am truly fortunate that I was able to provide precisely what they needed.
I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities to study the English and Maths courses that expanded my horizon and back to nursing practice again.