TAKING THE PLUNGE back into the education system as an adult is not easy, and support structures for mature students are thin on the ground.

However, once you get there the rewards can be significant, as Caroline Brem found. Having left school at 15, she braved the system again and found she thrived on it.

Now she has written a book designed to encourage other adults to follow in her footsteps. She accomplishes this in an easy, chatty style which takes her readers through all the normal panics about studying and preparing essays.

The books is written with humour and an understanding of what it is like to be a mature student; it also has practical advice about time-planning, goal-setting and getting the most out of a course.

Caroline Brem is writing about her experiences in Australia, but a lot of what she says rings true regardless of geography, and most mature students will relate to her section about organising study time when there are work and family commitments to be juggled as well.

Since beginning her return to learning, Caroline Brem has completed a number of courses. She has an MA in education and teaches philosophy of education, communication skills, adult-learning theory and English as a second language.