Turning challenges into opportunities: Joana's story

When Joana Ismaili arrived in the UK from Albania, she already had a master’s degree that was recognised here. That should have made things easier, but it didn’t. She was starting over with two children to raise and a full-time role as carer for her son, who has autism, ADHD and significant additional needs. On top of that came a new language, unfamiliar systems and the constant pressure of holding everything together for her family. What carried her through was resilience and adult education. Over time those challenges became the foundation for real confidence, independence and a career helping others.

Being a mother and a full-time carer left little room for anything else, yet Joana still found ways to settle into a new country and keep her own ambitions alive. The first six years were especially hard. She moved house six times, each time trying to create some stability. For three of those years she spent her days on eight different buses, racing between appointments for her children’s education and her own classes at Leeds City College. The journeys were exhausting, but she never stopped.

Rather than let the difficulties decide her future, Joana turned to learning. At Leeds City College she took community courses that improved her English and digital skills. College became more than a place to study. For a few hours each week it was where she met herself again — not only as a mother and carer, but as a professional, a person with her own goals. Stepping away from the daily family routine, even briefly, gave her space to rediscover something valuable in herself and to start building a brighter future. She also completed Understanding Autism Level 2, building knowledge that mattered deeply for her own family and for the people she hoped to support later.

The courses gave her more than pieces of paper. They rebuilt her confidence and reminded her what she was capable of. That shift pushed her towards community interpreting. After finishing Level 2 she moved on to Community Interpreting Level 3 at Bradford College. At the same time she is studying Accounting Level 3 at Leeds City College, travelling between the two cities so she can keep progressing in both.

Today Joana works with two interpreting companies. She helps people who struggle with language when they need to access essential public services, making sure they understand what is happening and that their voices are properly heard.

What stands out in her story is how she has turned her own struggles into understanding. She knows what it feels like to arrive in a new country, face language barriers, move again and again, and study while caring full-time for a child with complex needs. That experience means she approaches her work with genuine empathy.

Joana’s path has never been straightforward. It has been built on years of quiet persistence, long bus journeys, repeated house moves and the decision to keep learning no matter how hard things got. Her story shows what adult education can do: open doors, restore belief and create the chance for a better future. It is a reminder that success is often less about how quickly you arrive and more about refusing to stop moving forward.