Since working on cars with her grandad, Millie has always been interested in the industry. She chose ESC for the Motorsports facilities, and is excited to put her skills to the test by taking part in the upcoming race weekends as part of her course.
What led you to choosing this course? If you chose to do a T Level course, why?
Ever since I was younger, I’ve enjoyed working on cars, especially with my grandad. When I was deciding on a course, I was originally thought about going to study normal mechanics such as Vehicle Maintenance, but in the end knew Motorsports Level 3 would be more exciting – and it is.
Why did you decide to study at ESC?
I did a year of Six Form locally but didn’t enjoy how much was spent studying in classrooms. I wanted to do a vocational course, and I really liked the look of ESC once I saw their Motorsports and mechanics facilities. There’s nothing like that close by, so I knew I had to come and study here.
What did you enjoy most about your course?
My favourite part of the course is the cars we get the opportunity to work on. For example, there’s lots of static engines and a wide range of car types. It’s nice that we have our own Motorsports workshop dedicated to the cars and because there’s lots of leeway and freedom on what we want to do with the cars, we get a say in what we want to do.
On top of that, everyone is really friendly and works well together. You never get stuck with anything because everyone will be on hand to help you.
Overall, how did you find the teaching/support?
Laurence and Rob are great and both are very passionate. Rob lets us work on his car that he races with which is a big responsibility and great hands-on experience. I can always go and speak to them about anything if I need to.
Did you complete any work experience during this course? How did you find it and what takeaways did you have from it?
Not yet but I will this year. As part of our course, we participate in the race weekends as part of the Student Motorsport competitions, and I’m excited to try that with the team. During season racing we do around 10 races, and we must go on a minimum of 2.
Soon we are going on a track day to test the cars we have been working on, and to test the lap times and see what works/doesn’t work. Everything we do in the workshop are leading up to events like that.
Did you take part in any events/trips/competitions/exhibitions or had any speakers visit? If so, what and tell us more!
We had someone from Varta, a battery company, come and speak with us about career opportunities in the industry. I also took part in a pit stop challenge at Brooklands College, where we raced against other colleges to complete the pit stop in the fastest time. I really enjoyed it because it was a race against time and we have to be very careful and confident in what we were doing, we can’t make any mistakes.
What are your future plans once you’ve finished your course?
After my course I’m hoping to get a job in this industry, particularly in rally racing because I find it more exciting and you’re always on edge. Rally racing is off track so it requires more skill, and studying Motorsports Level 3 means I will gain all the skills needed for that and have more opportunities for work experience.
Would you recommend ESC to a future student? If so, why?
Yes, there’s a lot of facilities and it’s a friendly place within the course and the teachers are really good. It’s got a lot of good progression as a department.
