We caught up with one of our Digital Innovators Skills Programme participants, Savannah. She tells us how she found the programme, how it was impacted her career path and tells us what her plans are for the future!
What were you doing before you started the programme?
“I had just finished my final year at sixth form and was preparing for job interviews, then news reported that Covid-19 was going to force closure on the majority of businesses. This meant that all interviews were cancelled and left me unemployed.“
How did you find out about the training?
“I found out about the training from my work coach and was sent the link to the Digital Innovators website.”
Once you’d discovered the programme, what actually made you decide to join?
“Before finding out about the training I spoke to my mentor about any opportunities he could recommend that would help develop my confidence and teach me something new and he recommended the Digital Innovators Skills Programme. I decided to join as I felt I would be able to use the skills and apply them in my future job role.“
What did you think of the training? How did it help you?
“I learned a lot of adaptable skills such as problem solving skills, negotiation skills and presentations skills. I will be able to now apply that knowledge and skills during my apprenticeship.“
Were there any barriers or obstacles you had to overcome?
“There were no barriers I had to overcome. A positive is that the course being online due to Covid-19 was very useful and everything was easy to access. I may not have been able to travel everyday and attend each activity if the course wasn’t online.”
What impact has the training had on your life?
“The training developed my confidence and allowed me to meet new people.”
“It was nice that I was in a completely different working practice than engineering and I got the opportunity to try something new.”
How has the programme prepared you for employment?
“Before the programme I knew what I wanted to do with my career and used my networking skills to keep in contact with employees from my previous work experience. However, the programme did bring my confidence back which has been impacted since lockdown and it was nice to communicate and meet new people again.“
How have you found working with an employer on a project and what skills do you think this allowed you to demonstrate?
“I found the project very useful for my future role, working with the client and building that trust with them and collaborating on ideas to create what they were asking for. “
“I have always enjoyed my creative side and my task to create a website was rewarding and fun.”
What are your plans for the future?
“My plans for the future are to complete my degree apprenticeship with Jacobs which I start very soon. After my degree in a few years I plan to move to one of the companies offices in Canada while doing charity work part time.”
What would you say to someone who was thinking about doing the training but wasn’t sure?
“I would tell them about my experience and would happily speak to anyone who is having doubts.”
Thanks Savannah! We are so happy to have had such an impact on your career path and wish you the best of luck in your new role. Here’s to the future…
Interested in getting involved with Digital Innovators? Click here to start your journey or get in touch here.
Are you an employer? Would you like a young person like Savannah to work on a project for your business? Find out more about our projects here.