Mary Saunders

I graduated from the University of Leeds in 2014 with a degree in Adult Nursing.

A degree from Leeds has helped me progress more quickly in my career, as my time at Leeds was exceptional. I felt well supported and the lecturers knew how to push me to my full potential. There is a fantastic variety of placements to experience and because of this, the skills I gained showed me how to develop fast and learn quickly. As a result of this, at the age of 26, I’m currently an Area Manager working for a company who specialises in private healthcare clinics across the South of England and I line manage a team of 20 Health Promotion Nurses. The skills I acquired throughout my studies and post-graduation have been essential to my success and I can honestly say without the support of Leeds University I would not be where I am today.

Studying at Leeds has been seen as an advantage by current and potential employers as being able to say I studied and achieved a 1st class degree at a Russel Group University was a key advantage for me and I do believe this has helped me further my career.

I am proud to say I graduated from Leeds University as it is often compared to against other universities in the area against the precious ‘Leeds University Degree’!

The academics, researchers, and practitioners at Leeds shaped my professional life as I chose Leeds for my studies due the opportunity to develop into the nurse I’ve always desired to be, through extensive opportunities of academic and personal development. This was in addition to knowing the lecturers and facilities would be world class as it was a Russell Group University. I visited 6 other universities and no others compared, I knew Leeds was the one!

Overall, a Leeds degree has contributed to my career as I enjoy sharing my clinical knowledge to increase health promotion within the community and encourage the public to stay healthy both inside and outside of my career. This hopefully has a direct impact on communities reducing their chance of developing long term health conditions, such as obesity or diabetes. To further aid this and to continue public education, I also write and consult for a health and fitness website where I share my knowledge and experience I gained through my own weight loss programme.