With a young family and limited opportunities for studying health while remaining on the Coast, the 23-year-old turned instead to a career as a cabinet maker and worked his way through a four year apprenticeship.

However, the urge to explore his passion never went away - and now Mr White is turning that dream into a reality.

He is one of 112 students to have recently completed their first year of a Bachelor of Nursing at the University of Tasmania Cradle Coast campus, in the first year of the full degree being available in Burnie.

"I finished my trade and just knew it wasn't my passion," Mr White said.

"Nursing is something I've always had a bit of a passion for, and working with people - being stuck in a career where you're not exposed to many people wasn't appealing. It just all aligned for me."

However, that's not where his connection to the course ended, with Mr White realising his dream was the same as that of his late father, Jeremy White.

"My dad had actually expressed an interest in nursing as a career to our family," he said, a fact he only learned after talking through his plans with his family. He said that connection had stayed with him.

"I was just eight years old when he died, but I remember him being really passionate about people in Burnie.

"I've got a few family members who work in health care, and my step-dad is a paramedic and he also encouraged me, and gave me the idea that it was a good career and that I'd get a lot out of it.

"For sure it's something that has made me positive it's the right path."

Mr White said while it was very different from his previous work, he'd loved being thrown in the deep end, with the career change "an easy decision".

"The cool thing about the university is that the lecturers are registered nurses as well, so they're real with you.

"They don't sugar coat it, so you know exactly what you're in for, and you know what you could potentially see. It's good the support they offer too - they're more than willing to catch up with you if you're struggling with a concept."

Mr White said he initially went in with ambitions of working in an emergency department, but now he was keen to explore all the pathways a career in nursing could offer.

"Since I've started studying I've had exposure to other areas I've never thought about.

"I'm just taking it as it comes."

An additional 100 students are expected to join the Cradle Coast's health cohort next year.