UCLan Children’s Nursing graduate, Tanya Marlow, has achieved her lifelong dream of becoming a Clinical Educator, after a rewarding career in nursing.
For many years, Tanya worked as a Healthcare Assistant at Royal Preston Hospital based on an adult ward. In 2013, she moved to the children’s ward where she fell in love with the idea of being a children’s nurse. Tanya gained some experience in this specialist area and applied to UCLan to study BSc (Hons) Nursing with Registered Nurse (Children and Young People).
After graduating in 2017, Tanya started working as a registered children’s nurse at the Royal Preston Hospital where she was responsible for the holistic assessment, care planning and treatment of children who were in hospital for medical, surgical and mental health care. Tanya was responsible for the triage of patients, administering medication and providing lifesaving interventions.
During this time, Tanya helped to set up a youth forum in the hospital called Youth Voice, which involved fundraising to make improvements to the service by applying for grants, organising bake sales and other sponsored activities. The initiative was runner-up for the Governor’s Award category at the ‘Our People Awards’ ran by Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Tanya also volunteered as a nurse with a charity called Destination Florida, which provides medical care for children with life limiting illnesses as they embark on a trip of a lifetime.
After 5 years working as a children’s nurse, Tanya was appointed as Clinical Educator for the children’s ward at Royal Preston Hospital. During this time, she completed an apprenticeship in Mentoring Learners in Practice and was nominated for the Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Apprenticeship Awards where she received a ‘highly commended’ award.
"Studying at UCLan will open up many opportunities, so put yourself out there and take every chance to get involved and experience everything."
— Tanya Marlow, UCLan Children's Nursing graduate
In May 2023, Tanya was appointed as Clinical Educator at Derian House Children's Hospice in Lancashire where she's responsible for training staff, hosting professional and student education sessions, and developing a paediatric palliative care training care training programme for professionals in Lancashire and South Cumbria.
Looking back on her time at UCLan, Tanya’s favourite memory was being given the opportunity to complete her elective placement abroad in Sri Lanka. She recalled: “It was a truly life-changing and eye-opening trip and I will cherish the memories for the rest of my life.”
Speaking fondly of her UCLan experience and its impact on her life, Tanya added: “I had some excellent and inspirational tutors at UCLan and I've now achieved my dream of working in nursing education."
Tanya is particularly humbled and proud of winning Student of the Year in the graduate category at the 2018 British Education Awards, after being nominated by her lecturers.
When asked if she had any advice to give to graduates or prospective students wishing to follow a similar study and career path, Tanya stated: “If you want to be a nurse but aren’t sure which specialism to study, I suggest gaining experience by working or volunteering in your local hospital. Studying at UCLan will open up many opportunities, so put yourself out there, take every chance to get involved and experience everything.”
Useful information
Nursing with Registered Nurse (Children & Young People), BSc (Hons)
Learn how to safely and effectively deliver quality nursing care with one of the UK's leading providers of health and social care education. After successfully completing our Nursing degree course, you’ll be a Registered Nurse, with all the skills and knowledge you need to make a…
Nursing
Nursing is one of the most worthwhile, rewarding careers you could choose, and we offer pathways including Adult Nursing, Children and Young People Nursing, and Mental Health Nursing.
School of Nursing and Midwifery
Nursing and midwifery are two of the most rewarding and worthwhile careers you could choose. We offer pre-registration programmes at undergraduate and postgraduate level. You can choose from all four pathways into nursing.
