A return to education and training secures a lifelong career for Wesley

After securing an apprenticeship with Zeiss in Cambridge, Wesley returned to education with CRC, studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering.

Upon leaving secondary school, Wesley signed up to an Apprentice Electrician role and believed that his future was set out before him, however, the unsteady employment market resulted in the loss of his apprenticeship and consequently his studies.

In a change of direction, Wesley secured employment at a leisure centre and began following a different career path over the following years. Despite progressing to Duty Manager, Wesley still held a passion for electrical engineering and believed that this was where his future lay, so he set about finding a way back into the industry.

Wesley applied for an apprenticeship vacancy with Zeiss in Cambridge and, to his delight, he was offered the job and shortly afterward he returned to education to study Electrical and Electronic Engineering with Cambridge Regional College. Although the decision to study with CRC was made by his employers, Wesley explains that it was absolutely the right choice, “Zeiss has a very professional, structured Apprenticeship scheme that has been running for many years. They have won numerous awards for their apprenticeships, including the CRC Employer of the Year Award. I fully trusted their choice in sending me to CRC and I was right to do so!”

Wesley spent the following five years studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering at CRC, progressing from PEO, to BTEC Level 3 followed by the Higher National Certificate and he describes his time at CRC as enjoyable and something that he misses, “I had some great tutors, Dr. Bassam, Dr. Kennedy, Dave Shaw, Ben Grundy, and Martin Collen were all great teachers that really related to the whole tutor group. I found the work challenging at times but with help from the tutors and my classmates, I managed to complete the courses with really good grades”.

Wes credits his success to studying at CRC, where his academic success positively impacted on his career progression. In 2019, Wes was promoted to Senior Technician, a target he had set for himself when commencing his apprenticeship. Wes proudly shares details of his responsibilities at work, “Essentially my job is to manufacture Scanning Electron Microscopes, along with assisting my manager with general operations. I am involved with process improvements, ordering of parts, assisting the build technicians, and contributing to production-related projects. I would definitely recommend higher education with CRC to anyone thinking of studying a trade or skill. I have no regrets in choosing the path I have taken. I am really happy working at Zeiss and this is a career that I can see myself spending the rest of my life doing!”