Danny

"Studying a degree was never within my realm of possibilities. I had no formal education as a child, and neither had any of my family. The route my life has taken has been far from straight forward, and my past has made getting even the most humble of jobs very difficult.

However, I ended up doing a Basic English and Maths course in Brixton, aged 33. Through this I heard about a Goldsmiths Open Day. On approaching the front door and seeing all young and beautiful potential students, my gut reaction was that this place wasn’t for me. Luckily, I made it through the front door and met Joe Baden from the Open Book programme. He is the first person who ever suggested I could do a degree, and I believe that without him I wouldn’t be here today. I started a History foundation course, but within a month the course tutor could see it was too easy for me and she transferred me to the BA (Hons) course.

Here, tutors and Open Book have worked with me on an individual level. Their support and therein my experience has been tailored to suit me. It has been a personal struggle to make my past and my life as a student complicit. But it has not been a struggle for my fellow students, who have received me openly. As a part of Open Book I have now been invited to be part of an RSA Think Tank to suggest new ideas for educative institutions. It has been suggested I could go on to do an MA and maybe even a PhD.

Goldsmiths is a special place. It stands out from the other Universities. Goldsmiths has allowed me a sense of social mobility and social inclusion that I did not feel before. Everything here is set up for students to succeed, however unconventional their background might be."