Mexborough Academy Students Explore Their Opportunities At The AMRC
On Wednesday 17th January fifteen Year 10 students from Mexborough Academy in Rotherham visited the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) Training Centre. Many of the students are involved in the HeppSY+ programme and the trip allowed them to explore alternative higher education opportunities before making their Post 16 choices next year.
During the session students benefitted from a talk from an AMRC representative who detailed what it is like to work in engineering, the variety of different apprenticeships the centre has on offer, as well as introducing some of the employers they work with, including: Rolls Royce, Boeing and Maclaren Automotive. There was further information about funding and the new degree apprenticeships with the University of Sheffield.
The group were introduced to two of the AMRC’s current apprentices, one aged 16 and the other 18. The apprentices were able to offer the students an insight into their journeys and what the application process to become an apprentice is made up of.
At the end of the session the students were taken on a tour of the outstanding engineering facilities and observed the apprentices welding and manufacturing a variety of objects. They were also shown the workings of robotics, CNC machining and other types of engineering manufacture.
The trip was arranged by Emma Bragg, the HeppSY+ graduate intern based at Mexborough Academy, who said: ‘I arranged the trip to raise the aspirations of some of our students interested in pursuing a career in science and engineering. It was an opportunity to show them exactly what is on offer on their doorstep and what they can do if they work hard. I wanted to introduce them to degree apprenticeships, which I’ve seen becoming a more and more desirable pathway for our students.’
Continuing, ‘I think the trip was really beneficial in helping those students to make a more informed choice about their next steps and acknowledge the different options out there. I already have interest in doing a second trip with another group of students!’
One student on the trip said, ‘It’s been a really enjoyable morning, I enjoyed the tour and seeing what they do here. It was useful to hear about the apprenticeships they offer, it’s helped me to realise I definitely want to go into an engineering career.’
Another said, ‘It’s been fun coming to the AMRC today. It was interesting to find out about the different apprenticeships you can do here .’
