04/05/11
North Wales students dive deep to find hidden talent
Superfast learners Adam Edgar, 20, from Capel Curig and Ashleigh Pritchard, 17, from Pwellheli each won gold awards at the skillscompetition Wales marine engineering contest only months after starting courses in the subject.
The high-profile event was hosted by Coleg Llandrillo in Pwllheli.
Looking for a new interest, Adam, a ski instructor, enrolled on a boatbuilding course at Llandrillo in September, little realising it would lead to a whole new direction in life.
Meanwhile Ashleigh, who was at a loose end after dropping out of sixth form, signed up for a marine engineering course at Coleg Merion Dwyfor and is also convinced he has found a new career for himself.
Adam won gold in the boatbuilding category while Ashleigh took the top spot in the marine engineering skills section of the competition.
Both young men have been inspired by their success to continue building careers in marine engineering.
Adam signed up for a boat building, maintenance and repair NVQ in a quest for a change of pace from outdoor sports. He said: “I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, but, after doing a little bit of sailing, I thought I wanted to know a bit more about how boats work. I definitely want to go into boat building now though, it has already taught me so much, and winning the competition has shown me I am actually quite good at it!”
Ashleigh said: “When I saw the course, I thought it was right up my street, even if I didn’t know much about it, and the competition has given me so much confidence and should really help my career. I would recommend a vocational course to anyone, I have already learned so much since September.”
Both students confessed that they really had no experience of engineering of any kind before joining their respective courses and had barely even opened a toolbox.
Barry Liles, Principal of Coleg Sir Gâr and Wales' official WorldSkills Champion, said: "These competitions provide an excellent opportunity for our skilled young people to show that they can be world beaters. They can putWales, as a small nation, on the map by demonstrating the quality of their own work and showcasing the calibre of the Welsh workforce generally.
“Events such as skillscompetition Wales and WorldSkills UK present young people with an exciting opportunity to showcase their trade and vocational skills so that these skills may be recognised and developed to meet the needs of Welsh employers."
For more information you can visit www.worldskillsuk.org/wales
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