You have decided that you want to be a midwife (which is the first big decision) but where do you begin to make this reality?
Midwife Career 5 Top Tips:
1. Have you got the qualifications to apply?
This is obviously important, you need to see whether you have the points to apply whether that is from A levels or an Access course
“After deciding to be a midwife, I knew that I didn’t have a qualifications to apply, so I decided to do an Access course at a local college and it prepared me for Uni. I still worked part time, but it gave me the confidence to go back to study again after many years”
Sophie
2. Go to a university open day
Go to a uni open day, go and see whether you like the university, meet some of the lecturers, talk to current student midwives and find out more about what it is really like. Every course is similar but will have difference in their programme and what their campus looks like.
“I felt like I didn’t know where to start, so I went to the local university and spoke to a really friendly lecturer about what I needed to do. This really spurred me on, I only wanted to be a student midwife more from going to an open day”
Laura
3. Make it personal
Work on your personal statement. This is where most applicants go wrong. Really think about why you want to be a midwife, what attracts you to the profession and make it relevant. There is a word count so don’t waste it.
“I contacted Midwife Career to help me, my personal statement wasn’t going to plan. I found it really difficult to make it relevant to being a midwife and I struggled to get any experience, so I felt that it wasn’t strong enough. Emily and the team really helped me to focus and show that my life experience and passion was just as important to demonstrate when I didn’t have any work experience”
Jessica
4. Work experience makes a difference
Get some work experience, to make your application stronger. Think about how to get some experience, whether that is volunteering at a breastfeeding group, working as a maternity support worker, try anything to show how passionate you are
“I was a maternity support worker for 5 years and this was a really good beginning to knowing what a midwife role really is like. I think this put me in a good position to apply for being a student midwife and I actually felt I had a head start by working in maternity before I started as a student”
Karen
Read, read, read
5. Keep updated by reading journals, blogs and really understanding what is important in midwifery at the moment.
“I thought I knew what was happening in midwifery, there always seemed to be something on the news, but using the Midwife Career website and social media I felt like I was able to keep up to date easier and this guided my further reading, thank you!”
Sarah
