Sarah Stapleton – ‘Empowered to follow my passion’ with MA in Early Childhood Studies
Early Years
After leaving her job in business management to become a full-time mother to her three children, Sarah Stapleton found her passion for early childhood education by volunteering at a local pre-school.
She now works to support families and their children in her local community, leading, advocating and modelling early-year education through play.
Sarah has completed her BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies degree at Portobello Institute and is following her passion even further to fulfil her potential with our level 9 MA.
“I want to build, challenge and develop the skills I have acquired during the undergraduate degree.
“Throughout the undergraduate degree, I was exposed to current research with leading academics in early-year education and was privileged to be tutored and supervised by Marguerita Magennis, whose inspiring leadership has empowered me to follow my passion and continue researching in my specialised area and make a positive difference in children’s early learning experiences.
“Continuing to learn, develop and grow demonstrates commitment and dedication personally and professionally and will support me in advancing from a learner to a contributor in my chosen field.
“As with any profession, advancing professional development is important as it cultivates a transferable professional skill set, personal growth, and a high level of achievement essential to life-long learning, which is vital in leading early childhood education.
“I have learned that post-graduate research deepens and develops expertise practically and theoretically, establishing leadership through self-direction and autonomous learning.
“I will be tackling problem-solving and planning to a highly proficient level developing personal ownership, strong self-motivation and self-discipline, which are fundamental for career progression and catalyst employment opportunities, and I am looking forward to the challenge and to engaging at a more in-depth level with this subject area.
“One aspect of studying with Portobello, and engaging with the blended learning approach, is that it creates opportunity and facilitates education for working adults with families. This has definitely been an influencing factor to continue my education.
“The master’s programme is accessible, providing a flexible virtual learning platform to combine work and family life. Also crucial is the amazing learning community that elevates the learning experience. Learning is shared; knowledge is created together between a network of highly experienced supervisors and peers. This learning network differentiates the study process as collaborative rather than a solitary or lonely experience and was key when deciding to take the next step with a master’s degree at Portobello Institute,” she said.
If you are inspired by Sarah, get in touch with our early years admissions advisor Jennifer Matteazzi about fulfilling your potential in early childhood studies. You can email [email protected], call 01 892 0031 or book a free consultation call at your preferred time here.
