College alumnus goes to Oxford University
A former Barking & Dagenham College(@BarkingCollege) student has achieved his dream of getting into Oxford University.
Having gained average grades in his GSCEs, Edward tried A-levels but found that they werenāt for him. Edward explains:
āThen I had a paradigm shift; I wanted to make something of myself. I decided to go try a more vocational route to success and enrolled on a BTEC in IT Barking & Dagenham College.ā
Earning money working as a bartender whilst studying, Edward excelled in his studies; he secured Distinction*, Distinction*, Distinction* – the highest grades possible.
His impressive grades plus the extra experiences he got at college, helped him secure a coveted degree apprenticeship. Edward explains:
āI gained a lot of extra-curricular experience along the way at college, with companies like Career Colleges, Amazon Web Services and Comic Relief to name a few.
āThese experiences and connections then helped me to get a degree apprenticeship at Ford Motor Company. Doing a BTEC was a brilliant choice for me, and I would definitely encourage other people to do it.ā
At Ford, he worked as a Software Engineer, studying a BSc in Digital and Technology Solutions part time at The University of Greenwich where he achieved a First Class Honours. He was promoted to a Senior Software Engineer quickly after his apprenticeship had ended.
Edward has now found out that heās been accepted to study for a masterās at Oxford University, which he will study part-time alongside his job.
He sums up:
āI wanted to prove to my 17-year-old self, who didnāt succeed at A-levels, that it was possible to achieve something. There is always a way, even if you must work a little harder.
āI never thought I would even have a bachelor’s degree, and now I have been offered to study a master’s at the number one university in the world. I am super excited to start. Now I just need to work out how to fund it!ā
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