Student Experience

As a student at Callywith College you will be a key part of a diverse and thriving student community. You will meet like-minded students, all keen to experience the very best.

When you first arrive, no matter your interests, talent or ambitions, you will become part of a College community that is focussed on the future. You will make friends quickly and be supported by highly motivated and inspirational tutors. We believe each student is unique and we welcome the individuality you will bring to the groups of new and old friends you will make, your classmates and the College as a whole.

Learning and leisure are blended successfully at the College; there are cafés and social spaces across the campus to enable you to enjoy your time outside of taught classes. You will love experiencing your own transformation, as time at College prepares you for the next stage of your life. We know that universities and employers look for talented, well-rounded individuals who know how to excel in an adult environment.

College life is exciting, challenging and rewarding, and the College is here to support you every step of the way. It is important to us that you get the most out of your time at Callywith College and the support you’ll receive will ensure you have a positive learning experience and enjoy student life to the full.

Treating everyone as equal

We value and respect the diversity of our student body and work relentlessly in supporting everyone to achieve their full potential. Students from all walks of life can experience vulnerability at some point in their lives.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion ensures that vulnerable people are not marginalised or labelled and have a right to our wide-range of support services to help them continue and achieve. We regularly take and respond to student and parent/carer feedback as part of a continuous improvement cycle, for example, through individual learning plan days, feedback from parent/carer evenings, surveys and course reviews.

Hear from our students

For more of an insight into what learning and life is like at Callywith College, hear from more of our students by visiting our student experience hub and follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

You can also find success stories of some of our former students on our meet our alumni page.

From the course

Becca Kyle Eden Dolly Tristan

Becca

Progression: Psychology and Education - Cambridge University

Courses studied: A Level Psychology, Sociology and Biology

Extra activities: Student Ambassador, Academic Academy

Previous school: Bodmin College

How did Callywith support you in your application to university?

My tutor at Callywith played a huge part in encouraging and supporting me throughout the university application process. She regularly met with me, reassured me and helped me to create an application and personal statement I was really pleased with. The College also offered me the opportunity to have a mock Oxbridge interview which was hugely helpful in giving me a good idea about what the real interviews would be like and what to expect when I got there.

What did you enjoy in particular about studying A Level Psychology?

I really enjoyed the diversity of topics and learning about behaviour from a range of perspectives. I also really enjoyed the balance of being able to practice my essay writing skills, whilst also learning about more scientific topics such as biopsychology.

How are you finding your course / experience at university?

University has been a real whirlwind experience. The terms at Cambridge are incredibly short and very intense, but overall I have loved studying my course and have (nearly!) come out the other side feeling confident in my subject. I have had some incredible opportunities, such as an internship in Westminster, and have met some amazing people (including Stephen Fry!). I am currently completing two dissertations and revising for my final exams, in preparation for graduation in July.

How have your A Level studies helped you in your degree?

It's been so encouraging to find that all of my A Level subjects have been really useful in studying both education and psychology at university level. The content in all three of the A Levels I studied at Callywith have provided me with a solid foundation to build on and have undoubtably come in handy whether it be in a lecture or a last-minute essay!

Why did you chose to study your uni course?

At the age of 15 I became really interested in the education system and after completing an EPQ exploring alternative schools, I knew I wanted to go on to study education at degree level. I also, though, really enjoyed studying Psychology at Callywith so when I found a course at Cambridge that combined the two subjects together, I knew it would be a course that would suit my interests well.

What are you hoping to do in the future?

Back in November, I was fortunate enough to secure a permanent contract to train and teach at Brighton College, UK, which is really exciting. However, my longer term plan is to teach in a variety of schools, both local and international, and use these experiences to explore a career in research, with a view to informing future government policy.

Kyle

Progression: French, University of London Institute in Paris / Master's in Automative Journalism, Coventry University

Courses studied: A Level French, English Literature and Media Studies

Previous School: Saltash School

How are you finding your course/experience at university?

I really had the best time of my life being at uni. Obviously, the course is super important and I feel like I learnt so much in my field, but it’s the whole uni experience which I think can teach you an equal amount. I feel so lucky to have been able to call Paris my home for three years, having met some amazing people and to have had so many unforgettable experiences.

How did your time at Callywith influence and support your choice of/transition to university?

Having spoken to my friends at university I feel as though I’ve had the upper hand by studying at Callywith. One of the things I liked the most about Callywith was how grown up the students are treated. Having experienced university as well, I feel as though there was a very small jump between Callywith and my university now.

Callywith is an amazing place to find support for university. In terms of applications and interviews, the staff couldn’t have been more helpful in preparing us and guiding us through the process!

What do you enjoy in particular about studying French?

I loved my courses at Callywith, I studied French, English Literature and Media Studies. I loved all three of them and had amazing lecturers! Studying French at Callywith cemented the fact I was going to study French at university, the topics we learnt about made the subject appeal to me so much!

How have your A Level studies helped you in your degree?

I’ve used elements of all three of the subjects I studied at Callywith at university, even having studied Media and English Literature has really helped me with what I’m studying now.

What are you hoping to do in the future?

I’m currently studying a masters degree at Coventry University in Automotive Journalism which is a pretty niche degree being the only one of its kind in the world. I am hoping to go on to get a job in something like PR or magazine editing focusing on the automotive industry.

Eden

Progression: Royal Navy Nurse Student - Birmingham City University

Course studied: Level 3 Health & Social Care Diploma

Extra Activites: National Citizen Service (NCS) and work experience shadowing healthcare professionals

Previous School: Bodmin College

How are you finding university and being a Royal Navy nurse student?

It feels great to finally be a naval nurse student, and feels like it was a long time coming with all the complications due to Covid-19.

Raleigh; the training for the Royal Navy which puts recruits through 10 weeks of intense fitness and mental challenges to ensure they are ready for the fleet and the military in general, was the hardest but most amazing thing I’ve done!

The training has been massively different to normal due to covid, but I learnt a lot about myself and managed to cope in harsh conditions and with discipline that I usually would have struggled with. It’s made me change so much as a person and I’ve loved every minute of it!

I applied directly through the Royal Navy and wasn’t given an option of choices of university as they use Birmingham University for all three forces, but when I went to view the university on an open day I loved it, so it definitely would have been a choice if I’d had it!

I had to complete a basic interview to join the navy in general and some psychometric tests, as well as a medical and fitness test (1.5 miles in under 14 minutes, which I did in 12.40). I was then sent away to HMS Sultan in Gosport near Portsmouth for a two day nursing interview board where I had to give a ten minute PowerPoint presentation on a nursing related topic. I had to do a table top maths exercise and a nursing interview and so it’s very competitive with a hard and long process as they only take on around 12 people a year for their nursing, so it’s really hard to get a place!

How did your time at Callywith influence and support your choice of/transition to university?

I want to say thank you to my tutor at Callywith, Sara, for all of her help in getting me here. She helped me a lot with the things I struggled with and getting the grade I needed and I am very grateful! I am also very grateful to all of the Health & Social Care team for all of their teaching help over the two years I spent at Callywith, it’s helped me so much in my career so far and I’d recommend the course to anyone!

How has your Health & Social Care Diploma helped you in your course?

My time at Callywith helped me so much with preparing for my future career as the course in particular covers a lot of things such as policies, procedures and roles and responsibilities of healthcare professionals that I needed for working in health care, as well as giving me the opportunity to complete 100 hours of work experience shadowing healthcare professionals such as nurses, which helped me know that this is exactly what I wanted to do! I felt a lot of encouragement and support at Callywith to go for every opportunity I could.

Dolly

Progression: Architecture - Cardiff University

Courses studied: A Level Fine Art, History and Maths

Extra Activities: Holocaust Trust Ambassador and Young Curator’s Programme

How are you finding your course/experience at university?

I’m thoroughly enjoying my first year at University, although the pandemic has prevented many of my practical workshops, I’ve learnt a plethora of new skills and techniques.

How did your time at Callywith influence and support your choice of/ transition to university?

Callywith was extremely helpful with my next steps after college, with my Foundation application and also my University one even after I had left.

The extra-curricular opportunities Callywith offered helped immensely in my university application, I became a Holocaust Trust Ambassador providing me with the opportunity of visiting Auschwitz 1 and Birkenau in Krakow and I also was a part of the Young Curator’s Programme during my time at Callywith.

My love for art and my confidence in the subject grew so much whilst a student at Callywith with the help of my lecturer, applying the techniques learnt in first year to my own self-led projects in second year. These skills have helped greatly at University allowing me to have a more creative approach to my science-based course.

What are you hoping to do in the future?

After finishing my Masters at Cardiff University, I am hoping to work in a number of practices abroad and to complete the RIBA Part 3 which will allow me to be fully registered as an architect.

Tristan

Progression: Level 6 Digital and Technology Solutions Apprenticeship with Rowe IT, University of Exeter

Courses studied: Level 3 IT Diploma and A Level Maths

Previous school: Liskeard School

How much time do you spend in the workplace vs classroom?

We have online lectures one day a week, with a one-week residential per term. The rest of the time is spent working for the company (four days a week).

What’s a typical day for you when you are in work?

A typical day would start with having a catch-up meeting with my team where we discuss what we did the day before, and what we will be doing that day. I've recently been involved in a project where I had to develop a web app for a transport company, with guidance from my team I spent my days coding, helping to get the project complete. Amongst this I undertake training to develop my skills.

What’s a typical classroom/study day?

I have two online lectures in the morning, the afternoon is spent doing a mixture of assignment work and work set in the morning lectures.

What made you choose the apprenticeship route?

I chose this route as I was very set on going into a career in IT. To me the benefits of an apprenticeship greatly outweighed the benefits of a traditional university route, particularly in the IT sector. I get the best of both worlds, a full degree and four years of invaluable work experience.

Why did you choose IT?

The sector is forever growing with new and interesting jobs being opened all the time. Even if you aren't thinking of pursuing a full career in IT, the skills you could learn from these courses will help you in almost every workplace where technology is used and assist you in your day-to-day life.

How did the College support and influence your decision to do an apprenticeship?

My lectures were very supportive of me going down this route. They gave me guidance and offered me support along the way.

What is the best thing about an apprenticeship?

The best things would be getting four years of on-the-job work experience in a field I love, whilst earning a full degree at the end of it. Over the last six months I have surprised myself with how much I have learnt. Other stand-out benefits are getting a full salary and no student debt.

What will your next steps be?

My next step would be to hopefully continue to work for my current company and hopefully in the future become a senior software developer.

Do you have any tips for students considering apprenticeships?

Apprenticeships are great if you know the career path you want to take. They are a great way of developing your skills alongside gaining a qualification.