UTC Warrington student, Ole Fletcher is celebrating after securing a place on Boeing’s Apprenticeship in Aircraft Maintenance after his successful results, achieving D* D* D.
Ole joined the UTC when it first opened in 2016 and was in the first cohort of Year 10 students. He has since competed his GCSE and A Levels at the UTC.
Ole said: “I’m over the moon with my results. If I had stayed at my old school, I wouldn’t have been able to do this well and I don’t think I’d know what I wanted to do next.”
Ole is starting his apprenticeship in January. He said: “My apprenticeship is in aircraft maintenance and through that I’ll achieve my EASA licence which means I can work on aircrafts commercially as a maintenance engineer. In January, I will move to Cardiff to study at college for a year at the National College of Aviation Training, and after I’ll go to RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland to work on their planes. I’ll then move to Gatwick and start working at the airport on commercial aircrafts.”
Ole has always been passionate about Engineering. He said: “In 2016 I had a postcard come through my door telling me about the new UTC being built in the area. As Engineering is something I’ve always been looking to go into, I thought I’d take a chance and see what the UTC could offer me.
“At first I was unsure what area of Engineering I’d like to go into. Studying at the UTC allowed me to see the different areas of Engineering and that’s where my passion for aircraft engineering began.”
Employer engagement at the UTC was one of the reasons Ole chose to study there. He said: “The engagement we’ve had from employers whilst at the UTC has been amazing. Normally at school you have one trip a year. At the UTC we’ve been visited by employers on a weekly basis, as well as visiting employers and working on projects off campus.
“I’ve been to Land Rover Jaguar to see automated production facilities, Manchester Metropolitan University to look at the MSc Engineering course, as well as trips to the velodrome and residentials. There have been so many amazing opportunities at the UTC.
“The culture of the UTC is destination related and the focus is on where you’re going, not just what grades you’ve got. It’s all about where you’re going next. It’s not like my previous school. If you put 110% in at the UTC, you will get 110% back from it.”
Talking of his time at the UTC, Ole said: “My biggest achievement is definitely securing my apprenticeship because that’s my dream job. I don’t think many people get the opportunity to work in their dream job and I have the UTC to thank for that.”