Some of our Year 12 A level Geography students have been designing earthquake resistant buildings today. Not many marshmallows were consumed during the construction!

Yesterday three of our Yr12 students visited the House of Lords for a biomedical engineering talk. The talks discussed methods to isolate drug delivery as well as innovations regarding primary response to trauma. Our students presented themselves really well throughout the visit and did the college proud 👏

Pi Day and treats; the perfect combination! We're enjoying celebrating Pi Day with a selection of fun maths related activities for students across the college supported by @portsmouthuni #piday2024

Sasha joined UTC Portsmouth for Sixth Form and studied the Extended Certificate in Engineering alongside A level Physics and Maths. She is now undertaking a Design and Development Engineering Degree Apprenticeship at Kenwood Limited. “After leaving my secondary school, I was confident that I wanted to pursue a career in engineering. The collaborative projects that I did during training classes at UTC Portsmouth were enjoyable as it gave me experience such as presentation, teamwork and communication skills. These have become a crucial part of my career. Along the way, I have met lifelong friends and made unforgettable memories.” @kenwoodworld #NAW2024

After studying his GCSEs and then A level Maths, Physics and the Engineering Certificate with us, Ryan has joined Eaton Aerospace. He is now a manufacturing engineer at Eaton aerospace doing a degree apprenticeship and gaining a Electronics engineering degree BEng (Hons). “During my time at UTC Portsmouth I was always offered lots of opportunities to help grow and build my portfolio. The support from college helped me gain some great skills that helped me land my apprenticeship. Also, UTC Portsmouth being a STEM college helped me build the best foundation to go into the engineering sector all the base foundation skills that were taught helped me start picking up the job quicker and gave me a good start to doing an engineering degree alongside it.” Ryan is pictured with Mike Kingham, a Product Line Technology Manager who did the careers fair during Progression Week at UTC Portsmouth for Eaton Aerospace and introduced him to Eaton and the opportunities they offer. #naw2024

As part of our #NAW2024 updates we are hearing from students who left us last summer to find out what they are doing now. Today we have an update from two students, Alec and Ollie, who are both Degree Apprentices at Airbus. Alec What did you study at UTC Portsmouth?: A level Maths, Physics and Product Design What are you doing now?: I am on a Degree Apprenticeship with Airbus Defence and Space, studying Electronic Engineering and working with a team of Engineers that design, build programs and maintain systems that test parts of satellite payloads. Why did you enjoy your time at UTC Portsmouth and what did you gain from your time with Airbus?: Training and Enrichment gave me the opportunity to gain work experience with multiple engineering companies and get hands-on time in a professional style workshop. At UTC Portsmouth I was able to study with like minded people, all working towards similar goals. This is what taught me about degree apprenticeships and gave me the idea to apply. Ollie What did you study at UTC Portsmouth?: A level Maths, Further Maths, Computer Science What are you doing now?: I am completing a Digital and Technology Solutions Degree Apprenticeship whilst working at Airbus Defence and Space as a Junior Software Test Engineer. A normal day consists of me writing automated tests in Gherkin to ensure the reliability of satellite software, working towards my university studies, and speaking to other apprentices throughout the Portsmouth site. Why did you enjoy your time at UTC Portsmouth and what did you gain from your time with Airbus?: One of my favourite aspects of UTC Portsmouth was how interconnected everyone was. There was this sense that everyone was working together; prepared to support each other in order for their peers to achieve their goals. I gained a vision for my career through speaking to some of the employer partners at various events throughout the year. If it weren't for them, I might not have even applied for this opportunity, let alone be in a position to accept a job offer from such a well-established company as Airbus Defence and Space. @AirbusintheUK

Freya joined us in Year 10 then continued with us into Sixth Form studying A level Maths, Physics and Computer Biology. She has now joined the NHS on a degree apprenticeship as a Radiotherapy Technician at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. “Being a student at UTC Portsmouth gave me lots of practical experience and skills that I have been able to transfer to working in an engineering workshop. It also provided the opportunity to work with employers, gaining experience and meeting client briefs which I have been able to transfer to my new role.” Freya is pictured here with the Linacs (Linear Accelerators) that are used to deliver doses of radiation to treat tumours and cancers. Her role is a ‘Radiotherapy Technician’ doing routine servicing and quality tests to ensure the machines are running as expected. Her team also responds when a fault occurs and are responsible for getting the machine back up and running ready for treatment again. #naw2024

Mohin joined UTC Portsmouth in Year 10 and after GCSEs, continued his studies into Sixth Form completing the Extended Certificate in Engineering next to A level Maths & Product Design. He is now a Product Engineer with Jaguar Land Rover as part of their Applied Professional Engineering Degree Apprenticeship Programme. He said: “I am grateful for my four-year journey at UTC Portsmouth, I've cultivated valuable skills leading to a Degree Apprenticeship at Jaguar Land Rover. Working for a reputable company while pursuing my degree at the University of Warwick is an incredible opportunity. The unwavering support from my teachers during the apprenticeship application and throughout my A level studies has been pivotal. My involvement in employer partner projects has not only provided invaluable experience but also enhanced my candidacy. I am thankful for the guidance and opportunities that have shaped my career path.” #NAW2024

It's the start of National Apprenticeship Week and we thought we’d start with an update on how one of our alumni that we featured last year is getting on. Sasha secured a place on the Royal Navy Accelerated Apprenticeship in Marine Engineering, after studying the Engineering Certificate with A level Maths and Physics with us. “Since getting back from being on ship in September I’m now at HMS Sultan until early 2025 on the Leading Hand's Course, going into more depth of what I learnt during phase 2 and deployment. I’ve also chosen to specialise in electronics rather than mechanics and everything is going really well. I'm looking forward to going back to sea in April 2025!” “My time at UTC Portsmouth helped me a lot to get to where I am today. From the theory of A levels to the practicals in engineering; it all benefited my skill sets and has allowed me to be able to complete the job I am now in. All STEM experiences that I was given from Year 10 up until Year 13 also helped in lots of different ways and I am very thankful for the encouragement and help I got from all the teachers.” Sasha is pictured here at her phase 2 pass out. #NAW2024

Congratulations to Sixth Form student Phoebe, who was invested as a First Sea Lord Cadet for 2024 for the Volunteer Cadet Corps on HMS Victory this month. She is one of only 11 picked from the 120,000 cadets in the UK, so this is a really fantastic achievement. A big year of opportunities and adventures await!

There are just a couple more days to apply to join our Sixth Form from September 2024. Applications close on 12 January, so apply now if you want to be part of the region's only STEM college.

"Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them." -Laurence Binyon, 'For the Fallen' A very moving act of remembrance at our college today, lovely to see so many of our students in their various uniforms too. #Remembrance #LestWeForget

Great to hear that Sixth Form student Ryan was selected to be part of the Trafalgar Day parade representing the Royal Marine Volunteer Corps during half term👏

Thank you to Eaton Aerospace for hosting our students for a site visit last week. They did a great job showing off their problem solving skills on a VR escape room challenge at the end of the visit, easily beating the best time set by the eaton engineers #stemeducation

Iceland trip update - over the last 2 days the group have been very busy caving in a lava tube, glacier hiking, late night Reykjavik walking in the snow and visiting the Blue Lagoon. Safe travels home!🛫

Iceland trip update - Sadly we've had some bad weather so have been stranded in a small town, but we've managed to get out to see some waterfalls and beautiful views 😀

Iceland trip update - yesterday after the tomato farm we went to the Lava Centre where which is an interactive educational centre where we experienced an earthquake (simulated) and learnt more about Iceland's tectonic activity. We also then went to a waterfall that you can walk behind.

Our students are having a fantastic time visiting Iceland this week. This morning they visited a thermally powered tomato farm after an action packed day yesterday taking in views of Reykjavik, a planetarium visit, ice cave and Gullfoss (fault guided waterfall).

Electroplating is one of the most useful metal finishing processes in the engineering and manufacturing industries. Our T level Engineering students were able to perform their own experiment this week to observe the electroplating of graphite with copper. #tlevelengineering #stemeducation

Our Year 11 Geography students are visiting The Witterings today to collect primary field data. Great to see the sun is shining for them 😎