T Level Health – Kasey

T Level in Health

What made you choose T Levels instead of other post-16 options? 

‘When I came in to look around, they said with T Levels you have 315 work hours, which really made me want to do the T Level because you’re not just at college, you’ve got your work as well.’   

Is there anything about T Levels which took you by surprise? 

‘The core of T Levels took me by surprise a little, I knew we would be going into more detail about certain things compared to what you would learn at school, but we have been going into proper, proper detail about it all which is very interesting.’ 

How have you found the transition from school to T Levels in terms of workload and learning styles? 

‘Oh, it’s been amazing, I prefer this much more because at college you’ve got your freedom, and it’s like you are actually your own person for once… I show my mam all my work and she says I didn’t realise you were going into arts and crafts, but the way I work is an easier way for it to get into my head, because you’re not just copying from a board or copying from other work, but you’re putting it in your own words in a form that is easier for you to understand. You’re making it into something of your own that you can read easier.’ 

What job or career path are you looking to go into after college? 

‘I have three, either becoming a paramedic, A&E or a paediatric nurse. I knew I wanted to go into health after watching Grey’s Anatomy. Ever since I have watched that, I knew I wanted to do something in the health sector.’ 

How are you finding the balance between classroom learning and placement? 

‘I have been doing my placement since the first week we started college. I found a place straight away working in a pharmacy. So, I work on a Wednesday and a Thursday, and I think that’s perfect because obviously I’ve got my two days of college learning with all the practical and studying stuff I need, then I’ve got my work, which is more hands-on. We got told to start with just doing placement on a Wednesday, but because we aren’t in college on Thursday’s the pharmacy asked which day I would prefer, so I decided to work both.’ 

How do you think the course is helping you develop skills that you can use in the field? 

‘Most of the tasks we do, we do at a table, for example if we are working on a poster, the whole table is working on one poster. So, we’ve all got to like tell our ideas as well as incorporate them all into one. So, you are learning to listen to other people’s ideas and how to incorporate multiple ideas.’ 

What advice would you give to someone considering doing a T Level? 

‘Don’t be shy, because I didn’t think I’d be speaking to as many people as I am, and like coming in, you don’t know anybody, so just be yourself, be confident and don’t feel like you’re going to get judged by anyone because you really don’t. It’s like a little family in your classroom, a nice little bubble.’ 

What are your plans after completing this T Level? 

‘I have been looking at a student apprenticeship placement with an ambulance service that takes people on after college if they don’t want to go off to university. But I have said that if I have to go to university, then I will because I’m going to become what I want to be, but if I get the opportunity to go into the ambulance service, I would like to try that, but I would still be happy to go to university.’ 

If you could sum up your experience so far on the T Level programme, what would you say? 

‘Chaotic, but good chaos. You’ve got loads of different things that you have to do. For example, in the first hour of the lesson, you might be doing something, then for the next hour you might be doing something completely different, it’s quite enjoyable.’  

Find out more about T Levels