This weekend we will be celebrating mums and other special women in our lives. In recognition of this special date, the UNE School of Law thought it would be nice to celebrate the achievements of Kelly Hatch who is both one of our recent graduates and most importantly a mum.
Kelly grew up in Tamworth- which is a large regional centre located about 90 minutes’ drive from Armidale. After finishing school Kelly worked in retail and hospitality. At an early age Kelly disengaged in education and never thought she would have the opportunity to study in a tertiary environment.

One of Kelly’s friends told her about UNE’s Pathways Program which allows students who do not excel at school to gain admission to a university degree. Kelly visited UNE’s study centre in Tamworth and signed up for the free program.

Whilst undertaking the pathways program Kelly completed four units. Within these units she learnt how to research effectively, construct paragraphs, and write essays.

After completing this program Kelly became the first member of her family to go to university.

Kelly’s Family

During her law degree Kelly thrived. She found learning in an independent and autonomous environment perfect for her. Kelly’s favourite law subjects were jurisprudence and administrative law. She said all her lecturers were amazing and as an external she never felt left out of the learning process. In particular she found the tutorials and podcasts invaluable to her learning. Kelly then rounded off her law degree by writing an excellent honour’s thesis relating to medical law.

When Kelly is not working she enjoys hanging out with her two young kids. She also loves fishing, bushwalking and cooking. In terms of career aspirations, Kelly would like to one day become an academic and is currently considering postgraduate study. In the meantime though, Kelly wants to build up her practical legal skills.

Congratulations Kelly! We are sure your story will inspire others to follow in your footsteps.