It’s all hands on deck at The Inspirational Learning Group as we prepare for a busy summer of Next Engineers activity. In addition to welcoming 100 young aspiring engineers as part of our Experience weeks, we are also working hard in final preparations for the graduation event for our fantastic Cohort 1 Academy students!
Over the last three years, 30 talented young people have devoted themselves to the Next Engineers Academy for the opportunity to develop key engineering mindset and skills whilst preparing themselves to advance to further education. Having completed over 220 hours outside of school, the students have completed immersive engineering design challenges, career coaching and college-readiness workshops to equip themselves with the skills needed to pursue their career in engineering.
In advance of their graduation on Thursday 1st August at Uttoxeter Racecourse, we asked the Cohort to reflect on their 3 years with the Next Engineers Academy and share their experiences and future plans with us.
When looking through the students’ reflections, in addition to enjoying the design challenges and developing their engineering mindsets, it is clear that the cohort have developed a real camaraderie and friendships that they will carry with them as they enter their new chapters, whether that university, apprenticeships or employment.
Describe your Academy experience in 3 words:
“Amazing, productive and memorable”
“Challenging, rewarding and transformative”
“Great team building”
The influence the Academy had on my post 18 plans is …
“It has made me more confident in my engineering abilities and has got me really interested in team management”
“The academy has definitely affirmed that I want to have a career somewhere within the engineering world. It also made me aware of many more options and opportunities out there that I did not know about before”
“The course definitely stood out on my CV and got me through to interview stages for the degree apprenticeships I applied for. It also gave me plenty to talk about in the interviews. Also the presentations during the course definitely prepared me for the interviews and the presentation rounds, putting me ahead of other candidates”
The biggest lesson I have taken from the Academy is …
“Teamwork makes dream work.”
“A engineer isn’t just someone who is good with numbers, they need to be able to problem solve, work as a team and communicate to whoever”
“Perseverance is important to complete a project and confidence is needed to deliver the project to others”
My plans after the Academy are …
“I’ve got a degree apprenticeship at Constellation Automotive Group doing business management. I will be working in a range of cities and moving around the company every 6 Months”
“Going to The University of Aberdeen to study a Master of Engineering in Computer Science”
“University of Wolverhampton to study motorsport engineering”
“I am going to take a gap year, to take some time to reflect, improve as an individual and take on new and exciting endeavours”
“I’ve been offered a Civil Engineering degree apprenticeship with AtkinsRéalis in Derby. I will be on the Water Infrastructure team”
Paul Dyer, Next Engineers Programme Lead for The Inspirational Learning Group said, “When The Inspirational Learning Group took over the running of Next Engineers Academy I had the pleasure of attending a session at Staffordshire University to observe Academy in action. What struck me straight away was the camaraderie and how close a bond the whole cohort seemed to have. Over the last 12 months you have shown tremendous dedication, teamwork and a great attitude to learning and developing.
A willingness to help not only your teammates but also share knowledge and ideas between teams has been great to see and I am in no doubt that you all have a fantastic future ahead of you if you continue the hard work you have shown this year.
Completing over 220 hours on Academy during a period in your lives when you have also had to contend with GCSEs and A levels is no mean feat and you are all a credit to yourselves and your families.
It has been an honour to get to know you all this year and I wish you all the very best for the future”.
I think that you will agree with us that our Cohort 1 Academy students are an incredibly impressive group of young people who are destined to achieve some fantastic things, both professionally and personally. We cannot wait to see our students graduate from the programme on Thursday 1st August at Uttoxeter Racecourse in Staffordshire.
If you would like to learn more about the Next Engineers programme, please contact nextengineers@tilg.co.uk
