Dear Daisy at 18,

Starting university is a scary and daunting time, but it is a brilliant time to push your comfort boundaries and find yourself, as you will soon find out. Completing college at the top of your class is a great achievement and puts you in great stead for the start of university life. Be proud of the choices you have made thus far and how much you have improved!

Where are you ten years later? Somewhere you had never considered possible! You overcome your fear of public speaking (well…you won’t let it affect you and your opportunities anymore!) and your fear of maths by finally passing that rotten maths GCSE which loomed over you for nine years. You do this to become an Art Teacher at an inner-city Bristol school. You fly through the tests and assignments to get there, all in areas you consider are your weakness’s. You push through the challenges to find confidence to ask for help to get you where you need to be. Now, you are passing this knowledge onto students who are experiencing similar concerns you faced.

How did you get to this point? Well... it is not an easy journey. You will go through a lot of ‘character building’ moments over the next ten years which will make you very uncomfortable. You find your final year of university difficult, and this makes you self-conscious about your ability. Do not let this stop you though! You have incredible support from experienced tutors, staff, and peers. You will realise that this is a tremendous position to be in and it will be the motivation for you to mentor/teach others when you are older.

You will finish your BA in Drawing and Applied Arts with a 2:1, getting firsts in some modules. This leads to a Masters in Printmaking, finishing with a Merit, and you organised your own pop-up shop and had exhibitions at Spike Island, Arnolfini, and even in New York! All from opportunities through university.

You will take a gap in being in education, working in hospitality, retail, and supply teaching. All careers which you have seen as a failure at the time, but all have a vital part in how you develop and become the person and teacher you are now. This is alongside honing your artistic practice. After three years away from education, you come back. This time to start a PGCE, completing skill tests, interviews and GSCE’s to get you there. You work hard, seek help, and build incredible resilience during placements, job rejections and even a pandemic, to land your dream job in a school where students are like you. It has been and it will be tough. But you will face your problems head on.

You are no longer that timid and nervous teenager that is scared to ask for help, avoids public speaking, or cries at the sight of a maths equation. You proudly address your class of thirty students with confidence in your subject and ability to progress into an outstanding teacher.

My advice to you is: 1. ask for help. Nothing is too big or small for advice; 2. Take those risks! The ones that fill you with tremendous fear. Because these are the ones which will lead you to your biggest opportunities. And finally, 3. Relax and enjoy this journey. Savour the studying and friendships you make during this time as this is the best time to experiment and take risks before you start your career. Your calling may not come straight away, and this is okay.

The funny thing is you are now thinking about going back, this time for a PHD…  Not bad for the first generation in your family, eh?

Sincerely

Miss Wright BA MA PGCE