Expanding educational capacity with further study
When Ms Stephanie Boyce started at Trinity in Term 2 of 2022, she was already part way through her Masters in Inclusive Education through Notre Dame University – certainly a big commitment alongside teaching full time, but she says that Trinity has supported her in her further study from the moment she arrived.
Launching straight into her Masters in 2022 after finishing her Post-Graduate studies at the end of 2021, Ms Boyce was able to receive a recognition of prior study. Combining this with week-long intensive units and summer units, she has been able to condense her studies down to two years alongside her full-time workload – a remarkable achievement in itself.
Coming to Trinity as a Hospitality Teacher, she didn’t have any expectations regarding the level of support she might receive for her further study.
“Providing time off to do something that I’m willingly undertaking of my own accord is an unrealistic expectation to have of any school, but I really appreciated that Trinity provided me with financial support to continue my studies,” she says. “Especially in regards to my HECS debt … it’s taken a huge stress off my family.”
Coming from her previous role outside of Trinity as a Learning Enrichment Coordinator, Ms Boyce is passionate about giving every student what they need to thrive and her Masters is already giving her more knowledge and experience to do just that.
“Given the diverse range of students I’ve taught in less than two years here, it’s been a really useful pathway of study. Being able to apply what I’m learning in a lecture on Monday night and apply it in a classroom the next day … there’s so much value in that.”
She knows better than most that to get the most value out of pursuing further study, she needs to be organised with a schedule that sticks, always looking ahead to make sure she’s not caught off guard by assessments.
“It’s been stressful, of course, but not overwhelming. My advice to anyone wanting to study while they’re working full time would be that you just have to be really organised.”
As for what happens after she finishes her Masters over the 23/24 summer period, she’s keen to find out what opportunities will present themselves to her and there’s a lot she’s looking forward to – not least of all, the free time she’ll get as she reclaims her weekends. But she’s also looking forward to potential foray into the mentoring space.
“It’s one thing to say I’m studying my Masters, but it’s another thing to say I’ve got my Masters,” she says. “It’s going to open up a lot of doors to get back into the diverse learning world and I’m really looking forward to that. It also opens up so many opportunities to engage with other staff, to use my studies to provide internal professional development. I really enjoy being able to impart my knowledge not only onto students, but also onto teachers.”
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