My name is Matt, I am a part time student at the University of Greenwich studying Mechanical Engineering and thought it would be a good idea to give myself something else to do…

Between working full time and studying it doesn’t leave a lot of time for much else. I am fortunate to be in a job which fully supports my studies with time off each week to attend uni, not accounting for the endless hours spent at home studying, revising and generally struggling with maths!

I decided to look into further education at the age of 26 having had no intention of ever going to university when I left school at 18. I stayed on and did A-Levels because I felt it would give me a chance in the world of work, and as it turns out it really helped me when I left my part time turned full time job from school stacking the shelves in a supermarket. I did leave this for a summer to work at a kids summer camp in America – this was quite possibly the best summer I will ever have, but more about that another time.

After a couple of years of not knowing what to do with my self I had one thing in my head – I needed a job that meant I wasn’t stuck behind a desk, but one that I could get involved with things, take them apart (on occasion even break them). It was here that I managed to get myself onto an apprenticeship scheme with a utility company and spent what seemed like a lifetime at a technical college on the outskirts of Sheffield, in reality it was 16 weeks straight but at 18 it seemed like forever! This apprenticeship gave me the ability to learn, the ability to try things and I enjoyed it – so much so that I am still working for the same company and was in the role of craftsman after finishing my apprenticeship, for 7 years. During this time I looked into options, I finally knew what I wanted to do with my life. I was going to become an engineer!

The first step was an HNC which took me two years to complete. Now I won’t lie, this was traumatic and made me question my decision to try and get back into education at every turn. I was one of the older students at the college studying for an HNC as the majority were fresh out of schools and doing this course as part of their apprenticeships. I was surrounded by people who knew what bodmas was, people who knew how to differentiate… I guess the point is, I managed to achieve an HNC in Mechanical Engineering with Distinction and I am useless at maths. I am now in year 5 of 6 at university (yes part time takes forever) but I can, with pride, say that I am a final year Mechanical Engineering student at university. I have less than 18 months left at university now, and I feel like a section of my life that I started 5 years ago is coming to an end, but what lies next…

Two years ago I started a new role within my company, I moved into the project delivery team as a project team manager, this is what is keeping me so busy when I’m not at un, or studying at home. This is a role I didn’t see myself every applying for until I realised that it was a step in the right direction for me. God this is starting to sound like a bloody LinkedIn page… however I digress. Moving into the project management world has given me many opportunities to learn new skills, gain new qualifications and expand my understanding of the industry I work within . This is the point of being an engineer. Never stop learning, exploring or expanding. And that leads me nicely into my next blog…expansion…