Barbara Dinsdale

Head, Charitable Trust, Heart Research UK

Leeds Trinity offered distance learning, which meant I could study in my own time. Although I didn’t physically spend much time at Leeds Trinity, I was very well supported by my Personal Tutor throughout the degree.

Life before the MSc

Prior to undertaking the MSc in Health and Wellbeing at Leeds Trinity University, I was working for Heart Research UK as Head of Lifestyle. A large part of this role was managing the charity's health strategy, which included community grant-giving for projects focusing on healthy lifestyles and employee on-site health checks. I also managed a school speaker programme and public health campaigns.

Why I chose to study at Leeds Trinity

I chose to study the MSc because it complemented my career and my employer offered to pay for it. Also, given that I had left school with no qualifications, academic achievement meant a lot to me and reaching a master’s level was very appealing. Leeds Trinity offered distance learning, which meant I could study in my own time.

Although I didn’t physically spend much time at Leeds Trinity, I was very well supported by my Personal Tutor throughout the degree. The course helped me to develop expert knowledge and credibility as a subject matter expert.

Life after the MSc

After completing the MSc, I went on to be the Head of a Charitable Trust, which gives grants and financial assistance to support people in the construction industry.  I have overseen grants for Occupational Health Research and construction related Health and Safety initiatives.

My advice to prospective students thinking about enrolling on the same course I did

Health and Wellbeing is involved in almost every aspect of life and the course opened up a much wider remit than the presence of ill-health. There are so many facets of life that this course taps in to and I would advise anyone with an interest in health to consider it - whether you’re interested in welfare, social sciences, housing, the judiciary system, education, employment or even the built environment.