Having a family at a young age, Haley Hodges was used to putting her own needs on the back-burner. And then things changed…
“The kids were getting a little bit older and more independent and I started to realise I had a bit more time up my sleeve during the day,” Haley says.
Though it hasn’t always been easy to find the time to study around work and family commitments, Haley said it was her husband who gave her the push she needed.
“He was really encouraging, almost annoyingly so! He said: you’ve got all that talent, why don’t you use it?” She laughs.
Haley decided to pursue a life-long passion and enroll in a Digital Photography short course through eCampus NZ.
“It was a really good way of getting into the mind-set of studying without feeling like I’d taken on too much at once. It was amazing; it’s really helped me to develop my skill set.”
With plenty of support and advice from her facilitator and from the other students, Hayley was able to power through the course.
“When you log into the portal you can see everybody who is studying with you. There’s a forum for each module where we would post and share our work and we would also share our images on Tumblr. This was really helpful for peer review as we could evaluate each other’s work constructively.
“This way of studying really brought out the best in my work – I’m not saying it was super competitive – but when you see someone post work that’s been really successful, it inspires you to push yourself to do the same,” she adds.
As well as work with the group and seeking assistance from her course facilitator, Haley also buddied up with another student online; messaging each other to help solve course-related problems, which she said was really helpful.
“And if I had any technical issues eCampus NZ responded really quickly to sort it out.”
Studying through eCampus NZ offers students enormous flexibility and independence, as well as the support to help keep you engaged and motivated.
Course facilitators and your very own personal advisor guide you toward your study goals. To ensure you stay motivated and fully connected, eCampus NZ also offers student support through Facebook and LinkedIn.
Be sure to check out our full range of Student Success Stories and if you would like to learn more about the qualification that Haley achieved take a look at the Photography Courses.