“My only advice to students who are going to do the Access to Science course at Kingston College is this: I had never been to school before because there was a civil war in Syria, and I thought I would never get a degree in my life. But I was lucky enough that there was a course like Access to Science, which meant I only had to study for one year. Also, I advise them, after they join the Access to Science course, to work hard, be patient, and never give up. Their dreams will come true as the support will be available.
“In 2019 I arrived in England and I didn't speak any English at all as I haven't been in school due to the Syrian war. I started learning English from the alphabet, and it wasn't easy for me because it was my first time ever attending school.
“In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I joined Kingston College for an ESOL course. The ESOL course helped me grow my confidence in learning, and I completed Entry 3 and Level 1 in English.
“After the ESOL course, I took a GCSE course. The GCSEs were slightly different as they prepared me for Level 3.
“After completing my GCSEs, when I was 20 years old, everyone advised me to take an Access to Science course instead of A Levels because it was a one-year course.
“When I applied for the Access to Science course, I had an interview with Jenny and Shahid. They explained the structure of the course and the support they provided to students.The most important thing was that the Access to Science course would lead to the same qualification as A Levels, which made me happy because I didn't want to spend two years on A Levels.
“During the course, I made a lot of friends, and we all worked as a team. The course wasn't easy, but I believe teamwork made it easier for us.I used to spend at least six hours revising and writing essays every day at the library. I could say that I was the first to arrive at College and the last to leave.
“In the end, I completed the Access to Science course, and now I am studying BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science at Westminster University after all the hard work I put in.”
