UTC South Durham held ‘Taster Days,’ on Thursday 9th and 10th July for incoming Year 12 ‘T Level’ students recently, under the watchful gaze of Heather Pehrson, Chris Atkinson, and Head of Engineering, Mike Donnelly.
Set several tasks during the day, Luke was one student who has humanitarian objectives in addition to his vocational ambitions to gain his subject qualifications before entering the workforce. “Ever since Year 9, when I did Design Technology, my ambition has been to design things to help people,” said the Bowburn domiciled enthusiast. Callum’s fascination thus lies in the expertise of bridge building, an enthusiasm inspired by his engineer Grandfather. A Newcastle fan, and unashamed ‘Big Dan Burn’ disciple, he has already shown promise in laser cutting. Another young student, Tyler, was absolutely engaged in his work, which he described as being, “so much better than classroom learning that allows me to stay ‘on task,’ without distractions”.
Jess likes the idea of developing technologies, Amber was genuinely enthusiastic about ‘any practical challenges,’ and Alfie is looking forward to an RAF career, as being the focus of his work and study.
Mike Donnelly is emphatic that “This programme reflects that today’s youth, given genuine qualification and learning opportunities, is capable of engaging with, and progressing keenly, in the vocational sector,” and proudly points to The UTC South Durham currently boasting a 100% FE or workplace placement rate for the programme’s graduates to date, and limited course vacancies for a September start.