By Samuel Uzochukwu Agbaraji | Guidance checked: 3 November 2026.
When I moved from Nigeria to Cardiff in 2025, I came to study for a Master’s in Education at the University of South Wales. My background included years of secondary school teaching and some basic care experience. I wanted to use those skills while learning how support services operate in Wales.
I trained as a carer at Cardiff Central. Through Cardiff Council’s Into Work programme, I also learnt how to write a CV and received help searching for jobs. That CV support helped me explain what I could bring to a role in Cardiff.
I now work as a Learning Support Worker at Craig y Parc School in Cardiff. My role is in education, supporting pupils with additional needs. I explored social care roles along the way, and the process taught me how to compare jobs, explain what I could bring from Nigeria and prepare for checks that were unfamiliar to me.
If you are an international student in Cardiff and want to work in care or learning support, start by looking at what the role involves, what hours you can work and what the employer asks you to provide. This is how I worked through those questions.
What experience did I bring from Nigeria?
Before moving to the UK, I taught in secondary schools in Imo State, Nigeria. I later became Dean of Studies and Vice Principal for academics. Teaching gave me experience explaining instructions, paying attention to how pupils respond and working with colleagues when a learner needed support.
I also had some basic care experience before moving to the UK. When I started looking for work in Cardiff, I wanted to build on that experience and gain practical skills that would help me support people with different needs.
The useful question for my CV was what my experience showed I could do. A job title tells an employer where I worked. A short example tells them how I worked. If you have supported a learner who needed more time with a task, for instance, you can describe how you broke the instructions into smaller steps and checked whether the learner understood. Use an example that actually happened and leave out details that identify the person.
The same approach works for someone coming from retail, hospitality or another field. A real example of listening to someone who was upset, noticing a problem and asking a supervisor for help can show how you communicate under pressure. You can explain the skill and give the employer enough context to judge where it applies.
I would keep qualifications, paid experience and informal experience separate on the CV. If you supported someone in an informal setting, explain the tasks you carried out and how regularly you did them. For each course you completed, give its title and date. That way, the employer can see both what you bring and where you might need training.
How Cardiff Cares Academy helped me
I was referred to Cardiff Cares Academy while looking for work in care and support. Cardiff Council’s Into Work service describes the Academy as a source of training and employment support for people interested in social care. Its programme page lists residential care, domiciliary care and day centre work among the areas it can help people explore. It also advertises training and support with DBS applications. Ask the team which support is available for your circumstances. Cardiff Cares Academy
The care training I completed
I trained as a carer at Cardiff Central. Among the courses and topics I covered were first aid, manual handling, safeguarding, food safety, mental health awareness, dementia awareness, privacy and dignity, and understanding your role as a carer. Anna my mentor, helped me book all the training, and I attended and passed the assessment.
When you list training on a CV, use the course titles on your certificates where you have them. For example, you can list dementia awareness as training and use a separate example to show how you communicate with someone who needs extra time or support.
How Into Work helped me apply for jobs
The Into Work team taught me how to write a CV and helped me search for jobs. Other people on the programme received help with their job searches too. Henry shared vacancies with me and arranged interview preparation for a Care and Wellbeing Assistant application. Joseph helped me when I had difficulty accessing my DBS account.
Funding for DBS and Social Care Wales registration
The Academy also approved funding for one year of my DBS Update Service subscription and for my registration with Social Care Wales. These were two separate items. If you are asking about funding, name the expense you need help with and check what the Academy has approved before paying.
| What I needed | What the Academy did | What you could ask about |
|---|---|---|
| Care training | I trained at Cardiff Central and passed my first aid assessment | Ask which courses fit the role and what evidence you receive on completion |
| Help accessing my DBS account | Joseph helped me with the access problem | Explain the step you have reached and ask who can help you move forward |
| CV and job search support | The Into Work team taught me how to write a CV and helped me look for work. Henry shared vacancies and arranged interview preparation | Bring your CV and a vacancy so you can ask how to match your experience to the job criteria |
| Help with the DBS Update Service and registration | The Academy approved funding for one year of my subscription and for Social Care Wales registration | Ask what is covered, how approval works and whether you need to wait before paying |
If you contact the Academy, you can make the conversation easier by explaining your situation in a few sentences. Say where you live, what kind of work you are considering, when you can work and what experience or certificates you already have. If you are unsure which role fits you, say so. Bring two adverts you are considering so you can discuss the differences in duties, hours and travel.
What I learnt from an application that did not progress
One care application I worked on did not progress past shortlisting. I also had help preparing for an interview for a separate Care and Wellbeing Assistant role. Those experiences showed me two different points where support could be useful. Before you submit, someone can help you check whether you have addressed the employer’s criteria. Once you have an interview, you can practise explaining your examples out loud.
If an application does not progress, look at the person specification again. Pick out two or three essential criteria and find the sentence in your application that addresses each one. If all you wrote was that you are caring, reliable and a good communicator, ask what evidence someone reading your form could actually see.
For instance, if the criterion is communicating clearly, you might describe a time you changed how you gave instructions when someone needed a different approach. Explain what you noticed, what you did and how you checked they understood. If you can say what happened afterwards, include that too. For a question about keeping accurate records, choose a different example that shows that skill.
You can ask for feedback where the employer offers it. If you have no feedback, stick to what you can check yourself. Look for an unanswered question, a missing example or a requirement you could not meet. A mentor can help you identify which parts of the application you can improve before you use it again.
How to choose between care work and learning support
I explored social care while looking for work, but the job I took was Learning Support Worker at a school. When you are searching, the word “support” can appear in very different adverts. Reading the duties will give you a better sense of the job than searching by title alone.
| Role or setting | What to look for in the advert | A question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Residential care | Who lives at the service, personal care duties and how the shifts are arranged | What does a typical shift involve, and which shifts would I be expected to cover? |
| Domiciliary care | Visits to people’s homes, locations and whether driving is required | How far apart are the visits, and how are travel time and expenses handled? |
| Day centre support | The people attending, activities, opening hours and any support with personal care | What kind of support would I provide during a typical session? |
| School learning support | The pupils’ needs, classroom duties and any personal care or physical support listed | What induction and training would I receive before carrying out those duties? |
If you have a teaching background, a school support role may give you more opportunities to use your classroom experience. Read the duties carefully. A job might involve adapting classroom activities, supporting communication or helping pupils with routines. Some posts include personal care. Ask how the school trains and supervises staff for the duties in that specific post.
Check the journey and shift times
When comparing roles, I would check location as carefully as the job description. Look up how you would get there for the earliest start and how you would get home after the latest finish. If the employer sends staff to different sites, ask where you could be assigned. A job that looks close when you check the main office address can involve a different journey once you see the actual shift location. For help comparing rent and transport costs, see the Scholarmake guide to Cardiff living costs.
Check your work conditions before you agree to shifts
While studying on a Student visa, I had a limit of 20 hours a week during term time. Check your own permission before offering an employer a set number of hours. Under Appendix Student, the term time limit is 20 hours for eligible students on a full time degree level course or above, including those sponsored by a higher education provider with a track record of compliance. Some students have a lower limit or no permission to work. Check the employment conditions attached to your immigration permission and ask your university to confirm the term dates for your course. GOV.UK Immigration Rules, Appendix Student
For a postgraduate student, it helps to ask about the dissertation period specifically. The dates you need are the ones that apply to your own programme. Before accepting extra shifts, ask your university to confirm when it considers your course to be in term time and when it considers your course to be complete.
Ask the employer for the usual start and finish times, including required induction and meetings. If you work for two employers, plan your hours together. As a simple example, two eight hour shifts and one five hour shift add up to 21 hours. That exceeds a 20 hour limit if all 21 hours count as work in the same week. A weekly record with dates, employers and hours makes it easier to spot a clash before you accept another shift.
If you plan to volunteer while studying, ask your university’s visa advice team how your specific arrangement is treated. Explain the duties, whether there is a rota and what the organisation expects of you. For more on checking hours, pay and journeys, see the Scholarmake guide to student jobs in the UK.
DBS, the Update Service and Social Care Wales registration
I found it easier to deal with these checks once I separated them. Ask about each one by name so you know what is already in place and what the employer still needs.
A DBS certificate is evidence from a criminal record check. Ask the employer what level of check the post requires and which workforce it covers. If you already have a certificate from another job, tell the employer what it is for and ask whether it can be used for the new role.
The DBS Update Service is a subscription linked to an eligible standard or enhanced certificate. It can allow an employer to check the certificate’s status with your permission where the certificate meets the requirements of the new role. The employer may need a fresh check if the level or workforce differs. When you ask for funding, be clear whether you mean the cost of a new DBS application or the cost of the Update Service subscription. GOV.UK DBS Update Service
Who needs to register with Social Care Wales?
Social Care Wales registration applies to specified roles in Wales. Check the exact post against the regulator’s list and ask the employer which category applies, whether the employer will endorse your application and when you should apply. The duties and setting matter. For example, the regulator lists special school residential workers as a category. If you are applying for a classroom support post, ask the school what checks or professional registration apply to that particular vacancy. Social Care Wales registration guidance
A training certificate can help you show what you have learnt. Keep a copy of each certificate, your DBS details and any relevant registration confirmation in a secure place. For job applications, make a separate list of your training titles and dates so you can fill in forms without sending personal documents before an employer asks for them through its recruitment process.
A plan you can follow in your first week
- Choose a role to explore. Compare a care advert and a learning support advert. Underline the duties you already have experience of and mark the duties you would need training for.
- Check your availability. Write down when you can work, when you need to study and how you would travel. If you have Student permission, confirm the work conditions and term dates that apply to you.
- Contact the Academy with a specific question. Ask about a training need, an application or a check. If you want to know what support is available with costs, ask before you commit to paying.
- Prepare two examples from your own experience. One can show how you communicated with someone who needed support. The other can show how you worked with a colleague or responded to a concern. Include your own actions and what happened afterwards.
- Apply for a role you can realistically take. Check the location, shift pattern, training and pre employment requirements. Ask how soon the employer expects you to start and what happens if a check is still in progress.
A simple application record can help if you apply to more than one employer. For each advert, record the employer, role, location, closing date, hours and date submitted. Add what the employer says about references, training and checks. When someone calls you about an interview, you will know which advert they mean and what questions you still need to ask.
Where I am now
I work as a Learning Support Worker at Craig y Parc School in Cardiff. My role involves supporting pupils with additional learning needs in their daily learning. My teaching experience from Nigeria still matters in this role. Giving a clear instruction, allowing time for a response and working with colleagues are skills I can use in a different setting.
The care training gave me new skills to list on my CV. Into Work helped me put that CV together, look for suitable vacancies and prepare for an interview. I could then explain what I had learnt in Cardiff alongside the experience I had brought from Nigeria.
If you are at the stage I was at when I arrived in Cardiff, pick one vacancy you could see yourself doing and write down the questions it raises. You might need to confirm your hours, understand a duty or check what evidence the employer wants. Those are specific questions you can take to a mentor, your university or the employer before deciding whether to apply.