Why choose vocational education?

I chose vocational study because from an early age I always liked to see what I've learnt in what I've shown to make, rather than just having a book with a bit of writing in it. The highlight of my course has probably been SkillBuild. SkillBuild is an event that's held here once a year for regional West Midland colleges. I got chosen to do joinery, new entrant. I got third place in the competition which means when put at the front of my CV would give me a stronger chance of getting a job. I never thought when I started in September last year that I would come anywhere close to being picked for any competition, let alone becoming third in it. The benefit of the apprenticeship is obviously earning while I'm learning. I come straight from school a few weeks after I'd left and started earning money which is what I wanted to do. Skills alone at work, all sorts of plumbing, pipe bending, soldering, and then bits of other trades as well, carpentry, plastering, bricklaying. SkillPlumb's part of the SkillBuild competition. The manager of plumbing at Southend City College asked me to enter the competition, so I entered and ended up coming first. The next round is the skill show at the NEC in November with a chance to go to De Boer. It took a while to sink in, but the judges' feedback was a positive as well and boosted my confidence to know I'm the best in the Midlands. I choose painting and decorating because I always wanted to get involved in the construction industry. I love to learn new stuff. In painting and decorating you've been given the opportunities to do that and every single day you get to do different things and that's what I love. I love to try new things. We've been given the opportunity to do a refurbishment in one of the colleges in Huntswood. It only doesn't involve painting and decorating. Other trades can join in to do things that they want to do as well, like plumbing, plastering, carpentry. Once I finish my course, first of all I'm doing Level 1 in P&D and I want to do Level 2 and Level 3 and then carrying that by the end of getting a job and probably when I get older, open up a new business in painting and decorating because I want to get involved in the construction industry, something I always wanted to do. I wanted to come to Southend City College because they have one of the best construction courses and I'm happy with the teaching so far, so that's why I came here. Southend City had the best facilities in the area, well, best facilities in the country as far as I know. Yeah, I'd recommend the college to anyone who even thinks a tiny bit about construction because once you start here, you'll realise it is the place for you to be.