Debbie Balfour, 48, from Stowupland, completed a degree in Integrative Counselling at University Studies at West Suffolk College, graduating with first-class honours. She also received an award for the best dissertation across all students at University Studies during the 2024/25 academic year.
Debbie said: “At school I was encouraged down an academic route, with little focus on vocational or creative careers. Later in life, I discovered how much I valued those paths. After A levels, I joined Lloyds Bank on a graduate scheme but eventually retrained as a hairdresser. I went on to run my own salon for 17 years, employing staff and training school leavers. That gave me a strong sense of community and communication, and I could see the overlap with counselling. People tell hairdressers things they don’t tell anyone else. During Covid, when the salon was closed, clients continued to contact me — not for a haircut, but because they wanted to talk.
“I began my degree as I moved away from the business. As a counselling student, we explored philosophy, and something that has stayed with me from that module is Søren Kierkegaard’s observation that, while life can only be understood backwards, it must be lived forwards. That process of ‘understanding’ was greatly supported by the smaller class sizes at University Studies, which allowed for intimate and thoughtful reflection in a trusted, safe environment.
“Returning to education, I aimed to improve with each piece of work. I really enjoy learning, particularly about the human experience and how we see ourselves and others in the world. For me, it is all about communication and community. A core element of the course was developing self-awareness, as only by understanding ourselves can we truly support others.
“When I found out I’d achieved a first, I cried. My dissertation, ‘Bridging the Gap: Using an Integrative Framework to Address the Dual Impact of Grief and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Young Adults’, was awarded 88%. The fact I’ve been recognised for it is incredible.
“Now I’ve finished the degree, I’m working at a local hospice offering grief counselling, as well as at a specialist school for boys with social, emotional, and communication needs, where I practise as a psychotherapist.
“Graduation felt exciting and nerve-wracking in equal measure. Looking ahead, I hope to continue developing my work on grief and autism — and one day, I’d love to take my dissertation forward into PhD study.”
