Graduation celebration with a difference

Proof-reading each other's essays and critiquing the occasional idea has paid off for Emma Jellicoe and her mother, Joan Gentle.

They are both graduating this week during Victoria University's graduation celebrations - Emma with a Bachelor of Arts and Joan with a Master's in Education.

"We weren't expecting to finish our degrees at the same time, but it just so happened that we did," says Joan.

Joan has just completed the last step of her study - she has been studying on and off for the last 15 years.

She works at Fernlea School in Wainuiomata as a special needs teacher, and was allowed 50 days study leave last year to assist in the completion of her Master's.

"I really enjoyed exploring some of the different research methods in my Master's. I learnt to video children as a way of reporting information, as opposed to writing a report, so that was a big learning curve for me," she says.

Joan's daughter, Emma, completed her Bachelor of Arts majoring in Sociology and Media Studies over summer. Unlike Joan, there’s more study on the horizon for her.

She's hoping to come back to Victoria next year to study Honours in Pubic Policy and/or Sociology. At the moment she's working full-time and saving money for a new car.

Living together at different stages throughout the course of their studies wasn't as stressful as expected. They liked having each other around to proof-read and edit university work.