“I’m really happy with my results, I achieved two A* and an A.”
Courses studied: Psychology, Chemistry and Maths
What’s next: Taking a gap year to focus on circus work, with a view to possibly going to university afterwards.
My story: For Ryn, results day marked the end of two years at Penwith Campus that took them from home education into a full-time college environment for the first time, and closed out with results that place the College among the country’s top performers, part of a track record built over more than 30 years of specialist post-16 education in Cornwall.
“I’m really happy with my results because I achieved two A* and an A.”
Two years that Ryn describes as having gone both slowly and quickly all at once.
“It’s really weird to say that I’ve done them now, because I’ve been saying I’m doing them for two years, and they’ve been a long two years, and also a really short two years, because it’s gone so fast.”
Ryn chose Truro and Penwith College’s Penwith Campus for its proximity to home and, just as importantly, for the feel of the place itself.
“It was a really nice environment when I came here, a lovely quiet community. It felt like everyone knew each other, all the teachers knew each other, it was a really friendly environment. It felt like a manageable size.”
Having been home educated throughout primary and secondary school, Ryn found the shift into a full-time institution genuinely difficult at first.
“I have found it really, really overwhelming being at college, because I was home ed all through primary and secondary school. Coming into college and into that institution was, ah. It was so stressful for the first month, and all throughout, actually, really. But even though it was stressful, I got a lot out of it, and it was really fun.”
What made the difference, Ryn says, were the staff who noticed and responded, pointing them towards quiet spaces, or simply making time to talk, when things felt like too much.
“My favourite thing has been my teachers, because they’ve been incredible at helping me understand things and learn, I picked my subjects based on my teachers. Without them I wouldn’t be here, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it, because the college environment was really stressful for me, and they really supported me through that. Telling me where I could go to find quiet spaces, or providing that quiet space, or just talking to me about geeky subjects when I needed to.”
Having never studied alongside other people or had regular in-person teachers before, Ryn says that alone was one of the most valuable parts of the experience.
“I enjoyed having people I could study with, because I never had that when I was home ed. It’s the same with having teachers, that’s not a thing I had. I maybe had one or two online teachers or tutors if I needed help, but it was very rare, and having actual teachers in person, lots of times a week, was so beneficial.”
Ryn is candid about how different things could have looked.
“I would not be here where I am now if I had gone through primary or secondary school — it would have been too overwhelming. I could not have survived it.”
For anyone starting college and feeling nervous, Ryn’s advice is not to judge it on the first few days.
“The first few days were really, really tiring, and I felt so overwhelmed. But I stuck with it, and it became a routine, and once you’re in that routine, it becomes doable, because you’re used to it, and because it’s something you’re committed to.”
With their results secured, Ryn is now taking a gap year to focus on circus work, with university still very much on the horizon.
“I’m having a gap year now. I will probably go to uni, but I’m having a gap year to recover from education, and do more circus and work.”
For Ryn, College has been a place where a difficult start became a genuine turning point, a quiet, close-knit community where they found teachers who understood them, friendships that grew, and the confidence to leave with results they’re genuinely proud of, another story shaped by more than 30 years of Truro and Penwith College helping students find their place.
