After his A-Levels Markus left school and started work in the Financial Services, after five years Markus chose to come to UCM to study our BSc (Hons) Public Health. Since completing his degree this year (2024), Markus is pursuing a Masters in Ireland, and is excited to see the opportunities that will be open to him in this fascinating field.
Here's his story:
A bit about Your background
I am inclined to characterise my educational and professional background as quite aimless; I did reasonably well at GCSE, but less so at A-level. I attribute this to my experience at school being quite challenging during my adolescence, among other factors. I thus left formal education without much of a means to stand out, and fell into financial services in which I worked for 5 years. Then, in 2021, due to a change in personal circumstances I decided to return to formal education as a mature student.
My personal values would not have permitted me to avoid higher education indefinitely. Not only do I consider a university education important for my personal and professional development but also most of my family have been to university. To an extent, I believe that my personal commitment to developing myself has continued since I left school as a teenager, and I recognise this as being important for preparing me to return to education as a mature student.
What made you pick UCM and this course?
Since the age of 13-14 I have maintained a strong interest in public health from a sociological perspective. This is not an exaggeration; as a teenager I became exposed to some incredibly thought provoking - yet radical - theories with respect to the alleged poor state of public health in the world, and the systemic influences on those outcomes. I have since recognised that I was overly impressionable to those perspectives during that age, but nonetheless set me on a path of intellectual curiosity from which I continued to develop my critical thinking skills. I thus felt that my interest and prior experience in the subject would lend itself well to maintaining my momentum on this higher education program; and this was important considering it was my first time in Higher Education.
What did you enjoy about the course?
Public health is an incredibly broad field. A useful, high level but simple definition of the subject states that it is a field that considers and deals with health at a ‘population level’. So naturally two important strands of the subject fall under health and social care management, and prevention of ill-health. I suppose I have enjoyed exploring the vast complexity at play in both areas, which has introduced me to systems thinking that continues to fascinate me. I also enjoyed some of the harder science topics of the program, such as microbiology and genetics; this had at first been my less comfortable area, however my interest was perked and combined with excellent lecture delivery, these were subjects that I would end up among my strongest.
How did you find coming back into education as a maturer student?
I feel that the environment at UCM and the varied assessment methods allowed me to excel, relative to the quite contrary experiences and sentiments I maintain towards my high school years. I recognise that, for some people, school does not work for everyone. And in my experience, I believe that educational attainment benefited from this different, more mature environment, and the life experiences that I built during those intervening years.
How did you find balancing your studies and any personal commitments?
I was very fortunate to have been supported by my parents when I returned to education. This was one of the key motivators for studying on the Isle of Man, as I would have otherwise incurred significant student debt. In fact, I have no student debt; and this is partly due to the fantastic support provided by the Isle of Man Government for mature students. No doubt I will be paying my dues in the years of service to come! So, there can be real financial advantages for Manx residents returning to education as mature students through UCM. Of course, it will provide a different university experience compared with larger universities across. The most important thing for me, though, was the favourable environment in which to learn, and the incredibly supportive and professional faculty supporting my journey.
Would you recommend this course and UCM to others?
Absolutely. I would say an inquisitive mind is essential for doing well on the course. For this alone should open students up to the right sort of questions. Above all, though, it should too provide the enthusiasm the field deserves. Professional opportunities, in my experience, have followed from my success on the course; this summer I was referred to Manx Care to conduct a 3 month research project to independently evaluate a community care initiative.
In a nutshell, it is what you make of it; if you have a passion for the subject and able to commit to the process, expect positive things to follow.
Where are you now?
I decided to continue with my academic development by enrolling on a masters in ‘global public health’ at Queens University Belfast. I am due to start the program in under two weeks. The course is only for one year, so will not break the bank.
What are your aspirations for the future?
I intend my masters degree to be the terminus of my university education, and start a career thereafter. The ‘global public health’ program (MPH), I have reasoned, should open me up to opportunities further afield, and will compliment the more localised orientation of the BSc Public Health degree I have just completed. At this time, I really don’t know where I will end up in the world with so many opportunities. However, I am committed at least to commence my career on the Isle of Man that remains my home of 22 years.