Cars and engineering have always been my main interest - the trips to Brands Hatch and the Goodwood Festival of Speed have forever been etched into my mind. From an early age, I knew I wanted to build a career in the Motorsport industry.
After completing my GCSE & A levels at secondary school I went onto study a HND in Motorsport Engineering at Brooklands College in Weybridge, Surrey. This gave me a step up into the industry. From there I worked for a dealership that specialised in Morgan Cars. I was involved in everything from general servicing, full restoration projects and racing support they gave me the opportunity to be involved with everything the business offered. After Morgan I moved onto another niche British car manufacturer – Caterham. Starting off working in the Parts department to learn how the cars were built, I moved into the Engineering Department as a Design Engineer with a sideline in the Caterham Motorsport Championship as Technical Support. The engineering role involved staff training on how to build the vehicles, offering support and writing technical guidelines – so I was teaching people without realising it. Those experiences made me realise how much I enjoyed sharing knowledge – and that teaching was the natural next step.
When I transitioned from industry, I was put into a department with colleagues who have all come from industry and offered a lot of support, backup and encouraged me to bring my professional experience straight into the classroom. Gaining my Level 5 Diploma in Education and Training has really helped me improve the way I plan and deliver lessons. It made me realise that there is more freedom to get the information across to students instead of the standard presenting to a class and I can draw from my time in industry to make the lesson relatable. It’s given me a better understanding of how different students take in information and how to make my sessions more engaging and practical.
Working for two major car manufacturers was a great opportunity and has given me stories and experiences that I can now put into my teaching to hopefully inspire the next generation of Technicians and Engineers. I found that the students wanted to hear about the “life in industry” and this gave them the push to work through their qualifications, pass with good grades and build successful careers of their own – something I am proud to be a part of on their journey.
I have enjoyed making North Kent College/Hadlow College the start of my teaching career. I have been given the freedom to develop my teaching style while being trusted to use my industry experience. I’m looking forward to continuing to grow as a lecturer and helping even more students turn their passion into a career.