Mums Who Study: Community
About the group
We are a group of mums who are undertaking study of any kind or who are considering studying. It is a place you can turn to when you feel unsure and overwhelmed or confident, proud and happy – or even all of the feels at the same time!
You will find mums who are on a similar journey. This group is extremely supportive – there will always be someone to listen, provide guidance, and share your concerns. You will find practical help with assignments, literature research, IT issues...you name it! We even spend quite a bit of time talking about the most comfortable shoes to wear on prac!
You will always find a crowd that will cheer for you, and will join in celebrating your accomplishments – because we all truly understand and appreciate the hard work that goes into achieving them!
So, if you feel like celebrating, worrying or whinging – all is allowed here!
What do Mums who study say
about our community?
All the questions asked by others help me immensely in making decisions based on my study, help with recommendations for universities and give overall support.I love the community it provides for mothers who study because it can be tough and during those tough times, it’s reassuring to know I can hop on here and see that other mums are in the same boat or have been and are willing to share their advice! Tamar Dawson
When I worked on my PhD I used this group often for inspiration. It made me feel less isolated and supported by people who cared because they are trying to achieve similar goals. Petra Dumbell
The support of this group has helped me to reach for my goals and begin my study journey. Seeing that there are so many Mums who make it work has given me the confidence to try myself. It's really helpful to see others posts who are in the same position. It's also a good feeling to know that when you or someone in the group is struggling we have each other's backs and cheer each other on. Alice Jensen
"... this group encouraged me to follow my heart and dreams."
Early in 2015, after the birth of my son, I decided it was time for a complete career change. I spoke about my plans with a handful of people and I was consistently met with “oh, that’ll be hard with kids, you’ll struggle”. I began to doubt myself.
In July 2015, I found the group ‘Mums Who Study’, a group of women juggling mum life & student life. With their support and advice I looked into my options and found an ideal pathway and an alternative option if I found I was struggling. Either way, this group encouraged me to follow my heart and dreams.
In 2016 I applied and commenced my degree early 2017. Now, in 2020, I am in the final year of my degree. And even though it’s been tough, I’ve had a supportive group of women I can turn to in those times. And I’m finding now I’m the one passing on the advice and support to women in my shoes only a few years ago. Sam Church
"Support from other mums who are in similar positions to myself is a vital part in working through my degree..."
My name is Jess and I am 32 years old and from Melbourne. I am married and have three small children aged 4, 2 & 7 months.
I am a therapeutic care worker for child protection clients with DHHS. I am also studying my Bachelor of Social Work through Deakin University. Due to work and having a young family, I am studying my 4-year degree part time. I began my degree when my eldest had just turned 1. Since then, I have had another two children and have continued studying throughout. I am due to complete my degree in 2022.
Support from other mums who are in similar positions to myself is a vital part in working through my degree. When I feel as though it is all getting too much or getting on top of me, the support from these mums has been amazing. Especially when I see the posts about those who have just completed their degrees through all of life's challenges and raising a family. It gives me inspiration and the drive to keep going. This sort of support is absolutely amazing to have. None of my mum friends are studying so I feel as they do not understand just how hard it is as a mature aged student juggling life, kids, a house, bills, work etc.
This sort of community has been a God-send and has really helped me get through the tough part of study, especially towards the end of a semester when we all have a million assignments due and we are all stressed to the max. It's just such a relief to know that there are others in exactly the same situation as me and that we can all get through it together. Jess Bedford
Meet Wini and Monika - our Community Managers!
Thanks to the amazing efforts of Wini and Monika we manage to keep our group a safe and welcoming place.
About Dr. Monika Wiedig- Allison
I was born and raised in Germany where I lived for a bit more than 30 years. Then I found a lovely English man who convinced me (very easily) that Perth, Australia is one of the best places on earth to live and raise a family. Although I dearly miss my family and friends, I have never regretted turning my back on my home country almost 10 years
ago…Most importantly I am a very proud Mum to two wonderful boys!
I completed my studies in Psychology with a PhD in 2003 – before I was married and
had kids. Not that it was a walk in the park back then – but imagining doing this now with these little people around and a household to look after makes me admire and respect EVERY mum who is undertaking the journey towards a degree!
I met Bailey in 2012 while we were both teaching at Curtin University. We bonded immediately - straight away it was pretty much clear that we had found soul friends in each other! Bailey introduced me to her research around studying mums. She is very passionate about this and definitely inspired me to join her on her “mission”. She ignited an ever growing awareness in me that there is so much work to be done to eventually see more prams, baby-
carriers , pregnant bellies and playing children on our university campuses so I joined her on her journey as an advocate for studying mums.
I believe in lifelong learning – in fact, I am becoming more and more enthusiastic about learning the older I get. I love teaching and I am very passionate about my field of study and teaching – Psychology.
When it comes to men and women/mum and dads, I believe that we are still not living in an equal world. Men and women might have the same opportunities available to them, but when it comes to raising kids and nurturing a family, we very much still see ‘traditional’ gender-roles. The gender-pay-gap (which currently sits at 22.1% (!) in WA) as well as the superannuation gender gap are clear evidence that our world is far from fair when it comes to gender. This is why I think it is particularly
important to empower women – and especially mums – to get an education to enable them to have a decent income and be independent.
But even getting an education is harder for women when they have children – because the vast majority of them carry the main responsibility to care for their children on top of running a home. So, studying needs to be organised around family- and also quite often work-responsibilities. This is the ongoing ‘juggle’ many mums face. Mums Who Study was created to support women in managing these multiple demands.
In my role as a teacher I meet many mums who are students and therefore experience first-hand what the ‘juggle’ means. Our tertiary institutions label them ‘mature-age students’ – which many of them don’t like. However, this label suits in that sense they are far more mature in their approach to their studies! Mums are usually extremely organised (because they have to if they want to keep on top of the ‘juggle’) and highly intrinsically motivated (because they WANT to study and they usually are making big sacrifices for it). These two qualities make many of them very conscientious, diligent and therefore very often exceptional students. One reason why I am part of MWS is that I would love to teach many, many more ‘mature age students’!
About Wini...
I graduated from the Australian National University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts (Art History and Curatorship). I became a 'mum who studies' between 2014 and 2019 whilst completing a Master of Information Studies (Librarianship) online with the University of Canberra.
Throughout these years, I also volunteered with the NSW & ACT Girl Guides, CWA Baldivis Belles and Soroptimist International of Rockingham.
As a mother of two, I have moved interstate twice whilst studying, volunteering and working from home. I spend my spare time knitting, crocheting and sewing.
