“It’s about making it work for your whole life, you come up where you’re meant to be.”
Approaching 50 years old, Nyree Mulholland is living proof that it’s never too late to pursue your calling. With decades of experience in education, youth advocacy, and social care, Nyree is now a second-year student, studying for the Degree in Social Work, through the Open University—finally realising a dream she first had as a teenager.
“I’ll be 50 the same month I finish the course,” she laughs. “There’s going to be one big party.”
A calling from the start
Nyree’s wish to become a social worker began early. “Definitely at school,” she recalls. “I never knew why—I just felt this urge to be a social worker.” She spent some time volunteering and on work experience placements at special schools, residential homes and nursing homes. “I probably didn’t know much about the actual job at the time,” she admits, “but I knew I wanted to support people in my community.”
Despite this passion, her first attempt to get into the Degree in Social Work didn’t go as planned. “I applied to universities in England but didn’t get accepted. My grades weren’t great,” she says candidly. “I was probably very naive about the expectations around the Degree anyway.”
A career built around care
Following this initial setback, Nyree pivoted to a career in education, earning a humanities degree and then her Post Graduate Certificate in Education. After teaching for two years she found herself drawn more to the individual needs of children than the classroom itself. “I loved the time I spend with the children,” she says, “but the pressures and paperwork outside that were not what I wanted.”
Her career took a meaningful turn when she worked in a setting working with young people involved with the justice system in an education post. “That was the first time I really felt I was making a difference,” she says. “I worked with looked-after children, children who lived with trauma, and those with complex needs. I just loved that job.”
From there, she moved to Extern, where she worked as a Multi systemic therapist. “My role was to prevent young people from going into care,” she explains. “It’s systems theory in action—working with families and their networks to make things better.”
In 2009, she moved into youth advocacy with VOYPIC (Voice of Young People in Care), where she’s been for over 16 years
The long road back to social work
Despite her fulfilling career, the dream of becoming a qualified social worker never faded. “I started bringing it up with my manager about 12 years ago,” Nyree says. “But at that time, the only option was to leave work and study on a full-time basis, which I just couldn’t afford.”
It wasn’t until a chance conversation that things changed. “My manager said, ‘There’s an opportunity with Open University coming up. Applications are due Thursday at 11am.’ I scrambled to get an application in.”
Even then, it was a very competitive process. “At that point, each voluntary sector organization could only put one person forward a year,” she explains. “That year, someone else was chosen. But I applied again, and eventually I got my chance.”
Now, Nyree, having been accepted onto the Degree, is thriving in her studies. “I really enjoy it,” she says. “Coming from a place of experience makes a huge difference. The assignments are based on the work you do, and I’m comfortable with the subject matter.”
Advice for aspiring social workers
Nyree is passionate about encouraging others, especially mature students to apply for the Degree, even if they have applied before and did not get in. “My advice is go off and work in social care, volunteer, and get experience,” she advises. “That grounding makes all the difference.”
She also wants to dispel the myth that university level education is intimidating. “Universities are so supportive these days,” she says. “The tutors are very approachable, they want you to thrive and they want you to succeed.”
Looking ahead
As she looks toward graduation, Nyree is excited about the future. “The goal is to keep trying to help make people’s lives a wee bit better,” she says.
With two young daughters, aged seven and nine, Nyree is also thinking about how her career will fit into the next stage of family life. “I’ll want something that works around the kids,” she says. “It’s about making it work for your whole life.”
And as for regrets? “None,” she says firmly. “You came up where you were meant to be.”
Feeling inspired?
For more information on how you can train to be a social worker in Northern Ireland check out: