Bonnybridge mum goes from maternity leave to criminology success
A mum who paused her final year of university after discovering she was pregnant has now successfully completed her BA Honours in criminology.
Edinburgh Napier University (ENU) student Rachael Fuller, 23, after two-years-out returned to complete the course, which included a dissertation centred around female prison officers.
The young graduate hopes that her choice to leave and determination to return can act as future inspiration to her daughter Mia.
Rachael, who grew up and currently lives in Bonnybridge wants to use the knowledge she gained at ENU to pursue a career in youth crime prevention.
Heaping praise on both her lecturers and family for their help following the pregnancy, Rachael returned to university when Mia was eighteen-months-old.
She said: “I wasn’t expecting to have Mia when I was in fourth year, but I felt really supported. My lecturers were always asking how I was getting on. They were so good.
“It was nerve-racking going back with a one-and-a-half-year-old, but my family helped out a lot. They let me focus on my university work when I had to.
“It feels emotional to be finished. When you have a child, you have a different outlook on life.
“I wrote a dedication to Mia in the acknowledgements of my dissertation.
“I hope I’ve shown that she can do whatever she puts her mind to when she grows up.”
Rachael is now looking ahead to taking the next steps in life and career, with daughter Mia by her side.
She said: “I’ve always been interested in helping people, the steps that can be taken to prevent youth crime have always struck me as being important.