Hi, I’m Maddy and I received Study Skills and Mentoring support whilst I studied at DeMontfort University, I graduated with a First Class Honours degree. This blog is a review of the support that I received from The Learning Support Centre.

Despite the anxiety I felt about meeting with my Tutor and Mentor for the first time, they both met and greeted me with a welcoming attitude, so I quickly settled in to the idea of accessing my support every week.

At the start of university I was in a thoroughly pessimistic mind frame, and through the time that I worked with my Tutor and Mentor, I was guided and nourished and found a new optimism. The support with LSC really helped me to manage, and enhance my university experience despite my mental health problems. I was never made to feel as though I was ill, and it was such a relief for someone to ask me how I was, as opposed to focusing solely on the health issues!

After I deferred for a year due to a hospital admission, I was welcomed back and thoroughly supported with my decision to restart the academic year. Being so actively encouraged to make my own decisions helped me feel at ease with the fact that I had somebody to discuss my options with, and taught me how to problem solve and rationalise more effectively! The sensitivity and respect shown to me as an individual meant that I felt safe discussing any worries, anything from my work load to time management and presentation preparation, to hospital appointments or coping with anxiety if and when I found myself having to use public transport!

We often created weekly timetables together to make a clear visual of how the week commencing would look, resulting in a calmer and less stressful or frantic approach or mindset to the workload. I would be guided to make time for rest and relaxation, as I often overlooked the fact that this was just as important as the work!

I could not have wished for more understanding, caring, patient and non-judgemental support, and especially during the last year of my degree. Without the support, I would not have coped!

I am massively grateful to the Learning Support Centre and the support I have received. It certainly offered a calm influence to my life at university as an undergraduate, because the support offered and reassurance was such a positive influence on my time as an under-graduate, I have now taken the leap into securing my place on a Masters Degree, and I can’t wait! I will be able to transfer the skills I have learnt, and feel safe in the knowledge that the support will continue to serve me well in other areas of my life!