Class of 2020 – Thomas Harrison
Thomas is looking forward to continuing his Engineering studies at the UTC after his fantastic GCSE results.
Thomas started studying at the UTC in Year 10. He said: “I moved to the UTC in Year 10 because my old school didn’t have much equipment in terms of Engineering, so I moved to have access to the state-of-the-art facilities on offer.
“I’ve always had an interest in Engineering but I enjoyed studying Geography and Computer Science at the UTC along with the core subjects of English, Maths and Science.”
Speaking about his results, Thomas said: “I’m happy with the results I have got. I think I’ve done better than I would have done at my old school.
“The teachers were really friendly and helpful. The learning support staff were always there if you needed help too.”
Thomas is staying at the UTC for sixth form: “I’m planning to stay on at the UTC to study Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Engineering. I’m excited to be going back and seeing people and getting back into a routine.”
Thomas enjoyed the employer interactions the UTC offered: “I enjoyed going to HMS Bristol for a week with The Royal Navy. Whilst we were there we got shown around the different Naval facilities and took apart and put back together different machines they used. It was good to experience what a job in the Navy would be like, and it helped us see the areas of Engineering we study in action and how things were used in the real world.
“At your average school you don’t get that much employer interaction but at the UTC there was quite a bit. We worked with Toyota, The Royal Navy and University of Derby along with many others.”
His favourite part of his studies was having access to the equipment: “I enjoyed being in the workshops and using the equipment most. If you enjoy STEM subjects you will enjoy the UTC as it prepares you well. Experiencing the workshop means you have access to industry standard equipment which you can use to develop skills for industry.”
Thomas enjoyed the extracurricular activities at the UTC: “Whilst at the UTC I was in a coding club where we worked on different coding projects. The UTC offered a whole range of extracurricular activities and also enrichment activities which covered art, board games, coding, movies and reading.”
Talking about the future, Thomas said: “The UTC has prepared me really well for my future. It’s taught us different ways to act in the workplace. Unlike other schools, the UTC treats you as if you’re actually an employee.
“I’ve developed teamwork and patience at the UTC. By doing group projects in my subjects I’ve worked in teams to reach our end goal. In engineering you need a lot of patience because if you rush a piece of work it can look bad. You have to take your time and work on it gradually to get a better-quality result.”