Gill Brown

Video transcript for ‘How I balanced full-time work and a postgraduate-certificate in disability studies’.

What was your experience of online study and your Masters course?  

“It was really helpful because some of us were working and some of us were not working. If we were going to be late to a tutorial, or not going to be able to make it, rather than send an e-mail we could just send a WhatsApp to the group and somebody would raise it in the Teams meeting.

“It was also helpful because there was such a mix of experiences in the group. I think the majority of people on the course were disabled themselves. I'm not disabled, so it was really helpful to have that the sort of personal insight and reaction to what we were learning. And that always feels much safer, I think in a WhatsApp group than it does in a formal e-mail. It meant everybody could be part of that community.”  

What are your plans for the future? 

“I think disabled people are often looked upon to advocate for all disabled people. So it's really important that non-disabled people are as educated. It’s key to my job and how I'll go forward with the company I work for, to really embrace this stuff.” 

What experiences with Leeds do you think particularly helped with your career? 

“One of the most beneficial things we did on the course was designing an accessible space. We were free to make whatever we wanted, so I designed a television studio and an office space.

In researching that, I saw what all the barriers were. You know as an industry, we are literally able to make it look like people are on the moon — surely we can give them an accessible toilet?   

Now I am very aware of what should be in place for us to be inclusive employers. If we're inviting people for an interview for example, how do we make the space accessible? What requirements do they have?”   

What advice would you offer to students?   

“I would recommend the course, with the understanding that it's a lot more work than I thought it was going to be. And initially, I found it quite theoretical — I understand why that was, but when I got into the second and third unit that gave me the base for what I needed.”