Maria Gough
Maria Gough left school with few qualifications at the age of 16, but now, 24 years later, she has fulfilled her ambition of becoming a Senior Nurse, while gaining a Master’s degree in Law.
Maria grew up in a Glasgow tenement, and despite passing her 11-plus her parents could not afford to send her to the local grammar school. Maria’s childhood was spent either in a children’s home or caring for her unwell mother. Now a single parent, Maria has worked hard to improve opportunities for herself and her daughter.
“Much of my education was sheer bloody-mindedness,” said Maria. “My dad told me I was thick, and that education was wasted on women; I proved him wrong. My employer was unable to fund my Masters’ degree, so I paid for it myself. The Master of Law course required an honours degree, so I did a BSc degree to qualify.”
Since returning to learning, Maria has completed O-levels, A-levels, a Certificate in Counselling, a Diploma in Psychodynamic Counselling, a Diploma in Higher Education, a BSc degree and LLM in Medical Law and Practice. She has also worked as a volunteer in a women’s centre.
Maria works as a Senior Nurse practitioner in an NHS walk-in centre. She has also become a union learning representative through which she encourages others to take up learning.
“Learning has enabled me to become financially independent and has kept me sane in an insane world”, she ended.