Our Scholars
What distinguishes Uversity's Scholars is their commitment to being transformed and transforming others as a result of the Scholarship and educational experience.
Meet Our Scholars
These brief profiles of Uversity’s Scholars provide an indication of their diverse experiences, locations, and disciplines. They are unified by their inspirational ambition and determination.
Ciara Hicks
Hayden Nightingale
Karen Horan
Michelle Murray
Octavian Visan
Patrick Lynch
Ciara Hicks
Ciara worked in the gaming sector prior to returning to education initially at the Cork College of Commerce. After her degree, Ciara intends to complete a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. She eventually wants to “work as a mental health professional in Cork City in the public sector and provide therapies and support to people who need it and improve people’s quality of life.”
Hayden Nightingale
Hayden was motivated to return to education when he gave up his job to move back home to help care for his mother. Knowing that he “wasn’t living up to his potential” and wanted to find a career he had a passion for, he enrolled on Belfast Metropolitan College’s Access Diploma in Mathematics and Computing. After his degree, Hayden may pursue a Master’s in Corporate Governance and hopes to specialise “in the programming development side of the IT industry and more long term work on a self-employed basis and develop my own company.”
Karen Horan
Karen was brought up in a working class community and experienced the difficulties faced by the community in relation to equal justice. By working for Inclusion Ireland she built up skills in information provision. She went onto volunteer as a Citizen Information Officer, where she developed a passionate interest in Law. She recently joined the National Advocacy Service as the National Administrator where she works full-time while completing her degree. Karen intends to use her legal knowledge to give back to the community that has given her so much.
Michelle Murray
Michelle’s passion is for animal welfare, particularly horses. In 2016, she set up a project to support equine health and education with the Kildare Traveller Action group. She subsequently completed a Community Development & Leadership course prior to enrolling on her degree. She recently completed a Level 7 Certificate in Youth Studies at Maynooth University. Her ultimate aim is to set up a mobile equine health unit to help horse owners in disadvantaged and rural communities that struggle to access veterinary care.
Octavian Visan
Octavian worked for many years as a Hotel Receptionist prior to setting up his own tennis equipment business in 2014. The onset of ill health motivated him to further his education and change career direction. He has completed a Level 6 Business Administration course along with extra modules in Maths and Computerised Accounts. His work placement in Cora Systems allowed him to further develop his existing design and communication skills. With his degree, Octavian intends to start a career in Digital Marketing and open his own business in the future.
Patrick Lynch
Due to the onset of a degenerative back disease, Patrick had to cease being a self-employed carpenter. As he is also a musician, Patrick decided to pursue this alternative career path. He hopes to equip himself “with a qualification relevant to a career in music, arts and media” and to continue to develop his own creative ambitions as an artist.
Richard Greene
Galway Mayo Institute of Technology Furniture Design & ManufactureRichard Greene
Galway Mayo Institute of Technology
Furniture Design & ManufactureHaving worked in high profile restaurants for a decade, Richard embarked on a journey to find a more fulfilling vocation. With a background in antique furniture, an appreciation of art and design and ability to work with his hands and solve practical problems, Richard has successfully completed Level 5 and 6 courses in Furniture Design and Making. With his degree, Richard intends to gain experience in a professional workshop, while setting up his own workshop to build a reputation for quality furniture restoration and bespoke design and solutions for clients in their home and work environments.
Rona Askins
University College Dublin PsychologyRona Askins
University College Dublin
PsychologyRona has just completed Trinity College Dublin’s Access Programme while juggling part-time work and family caring responsibilities. Her personal and academic experiences have led her to pursue a degree in Psychology with a particular interest in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT). Her goal is “to become a counselling psychologist and help others.”
Ronan McClelland
Ulster University Applied Medical ScienceRonan McClelland
Ulster University
Applied Medical ScienceRonan had a fourteen year career as an IT systems engineer before retraining as a fitness professional. Recently he has worked as a full stack web developer. He decided to return to formal education to leverage these experiences and his life-long interest in science. In 2019/20 Ronan completed an Access Diploma in Foundation Studies in Belfast Metropolitan College. He is determined to integrate his existing technology experience with the biomedical sciences and a passion to make a difference in the world.
Rosemary Culloty
Limerick Institute of Technology Social Care WorkRosemary Culloty
Limerick Institute of Technology
Social Care WorkFor twelve years, Rosemary was a Project Worker in the Simon Community’s Emergency Shelter. During that time she completed a Diploma in Youth & Community Work. Having focussed on raising her children for a number of years, Rosemary decided to enrol on the degree she had always wanted to complete. In preparation for full-time education, she completed a Level 3 Word Processing course. Rosemary wants to help and empower women and their children to live free from abuse and single parents who are struggling trying to give their children a happy life in such circumstances.
Sandra Pilszak
Maynooth University Computer Science through ScienceSandra Pilszak
Maynooth University
Computer Science through ScienceSandra decided to work rather than go to college after her Leaving Certificate. Over the years, having taken a Level 5 Business course and a Level 6 Software Development course, she has discovered a subject that she loved that was “challenging, fascinating and brilliant.” Ultimately, Sandra hopes to open her own business once she has gained some experience in the sector.
Sarah Dineen
Cork Institute of Technology Social CareSarah Dineen
Cork Institute of Technology
Social CareSarah’s “desire to be a social care worker has come from all my life experiences.” She initially attended her local neighbourhood project as a participant and eventually assumed volunteering and co-facilitating roles. After completing her degree, Sarah sees herself “working in the fields of residential care or youth centres.”
Sarah McNamara
Limerick Institute of Technology Social Care WorkSarah McNamara
Limerick Institute of Technology
Social Care WorkSarah returned to education by taking night classes in Psychology and Mental Health Awareness before enrolling on her degree. She has also volunteered locally. Her “dream is to gain the qualifications and training necessary to work supporting women surviving trauma and abuse.” She hopes “to inspire other people to find the power within themselves to transform their lives.”
Sharon McParland
Queen’s University Belfast PsychologySharon McParland
Queen’s University Belfast
PsychologySharon always wanted to go to university but financially this was not an option. In 2018, Sharon completed an Access Course in Social Sciences and Humanities in the Southern Regional College and deferred her offer for the BSc in Psychology at Queen’s University Belfast until 2019. Sharon runs her own commercial laundry business and intends to become a qualified psychologist so that she can help others in need.
The Scholarships
Uversity advertises and awards Higher Education Scholarships to Adult Learners to enrol on a Bachelor’s Degree for the first time