The principal of a mixed sixth-form college in the large Merseyside town of St Helens explains how it succeeds in opening the doors of higher education to students of every age and background

IN 1998, Laura left school in Scotland with minimal qualifications. She had always dreamed of becoming a dentist, but was now faced with the reality of this being an almost impossible career path. Determined to hang on to some of this dream, she managed to secure a job as a trainee dental nurse. She went to night school for two years, studying and passing any related qualification she could, until she got to a point where the next step was to look at possible higher education level courses.

In Laura’s words: “I came across a Foundation to Health Studies degree course at Carmel College completely by chance. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Could I actually have the opportunity to study to become a dentist?” The dream was back on, thanks to the innovative “Year 0” programme developed at Carmel College.

Year 0 is a year-long programme that aims to bridge the gap between school and university for those who for many reasons have not had a straightforward journey to the point of applying for university. The majority of students on the Year 0 course at Carmel are typically over 21, some may have had illness, caring or parental duties in their late teens, or others may have gone straight into employment but find they may now have hit a ceiling in terms of progression due to their lack of a degree. The programme gives a foundation year of study into the topics, content and types of assessment that will be pursued on the full degree course.