Deborah Cole

Deborah Cole came to the University of Waikato after completing high school at Bethlehem College. She had always planned to be a teacher since she first started school and role-played at home by calling the role with her soft toys. She had respect for her own teachers and wanted to be like them. "There wasn't really any other option - I just knew I wanted to teach."

She found the study rewarding. "I love the tiny victories you see when the children finally learn and remember something you have been working so hard for."

Studying at Waikato was an easy decision. "I chose the University of Waikato because I knew a few people who had studied teaching there and had raved about the programme," she says. "I value the genuine care our lecturers gave us, the friends I've made and the experience I gained from being in a school from the very first week of study."

Deborah has good advice for those considering studying teaching. "It's a wonderful degree - it's exhausting but rewarding. We need more teachers who are passionate."