Rosie Young

Gemmology and Jewellery Studies BSc (Hons)

17 years later since finishing her A-levels, Rosie discovered she had missed studying and fell back in love with education on her Gemmology and Jewellery Studies course at BCU; even though this meant commuting from Manchester to Birmingham every day.

"I’d never been interested in going to university as I hadn’t found anything I was passionate enough about to pursue as a career; I felt like I needed a break from education to decide what I wanted to do with my life. At the age of 33, things had changed for me, and I became interested in learning again – I had missed being in education. I had no idea that it was possible to have a career as a gemologist, but after finding the Gemmology and Jewellery Studies course at BCU, I felt like new possibilities had been opened for me.

I lived in Manchester, and I was in a situation where I couldn’t relocate, but I had my heart set on BCU and could see myself on the course. I ended up commuting to Birmingham from Manchester for the full three years which was challenging but ultimately worthwhile – it’s definitely possible! It was a struggle to spend so much time out of my day travelling, but I learned to be organised and to start my coursework early to get well ahead of deadlines.

My goal is to work in a gemological laboratory and currently, I am lucky enough to be based in California for a three-month research internship studying sunstones in a lab. When I return to the UK, I plan to further study my studies, and then hopefully my internship experience and degree will help me to secure a permanent role. I was offered my current internship as a direct result of my studies at BCU; my studies have been extremely helpful in setting me up to achieve my career goals.

The University in general offered a lot of support in terms of essay writing and job application guidance, especially the Careers+ team and our Student Success Advisor. Thanks to the Go Abroad team, I was able to get my placement in California part-funded which is how I managed to go!

I found the first year of the degree really enjoyable as initially we were learning about different gem materials each week and it was exciting to see the range of samples provided and have those hands-on experiences. Also being able to look at a large collection of diamonds to be able to learn how to grade them isn't something many people get the chance to do. The second year covered more specific topics in greater detail like organics and jade as well as started us thinking about future careers with the industry studies module. In the third year, we moved on to more scientific aspects as well as studying jewellery valuation and completing our own research projects.

I would highly recommend this course if you have an interest in gemstones, jewellery, or mineralogy as it can lead to a variety of career paths. I didn't come from a scientific background but my degree has helped me to gain a research internship. There was a big mix of people on my course so I didn't feel out of place as a mature student; I was concerned that it would be difficult for me especially as it was a long time since I had done my GCSEs and A Levels as the science I had studied at school wasn't fresh in my mind.

I AM BCU means having had the chance to do something different with my life. The range of unique opportunities this course offers is unique and is not something available at most other universities, and I wouldn’t have had the chance to pursue my passion otherwise."