INSPIRING ACHIEVEMENT /
I WENT TO BELMONT ACADEMY – I
WAS A CONSCIENTIOUS STUDENT AND
ACHIEVED GOOD EXAM RESULTS AND
HEADED STRAIGHT TO UNIVERSITY BUT
I ONLY STAYED SIX MONTHS – I DIDN’T
LIKE IT.
I just didn’t know what I wanted to do.
I got a job in Domino’s Pizza and was
supervisor there for about five years.
Then I changed direction completely
and worked for Spark of Genius that
cared for children. However five years
on I knew that care was not for me
either.
My heart lies in Art – so I picked this
up again and went as a freelance artist
with www.freelance.com meaning I
could work really flexibly. But I still
felt adrift and thought college would
give me an opportunity to get skills
and qualifications to work as a graphic
designer or a children’s book illustrator.
College has been great. It’s opened
up new ideas and possibilities and
given me the freedom to explore.
I have learned about photography,
printmaking, poster design – I
have enjoyed it all! It’s also been a
challenging experience balancing work,
study, finance, managing time and
having a life!
Coming back to education at 27 years
of age was strange at first but age
does not really matter. We have a lot
of group projects so you get used to
working with a diverse range of people.
What’s more important is drive. You
THE STUDENT VOICE: AUTUMN 2015
need personal drive and motivation to
be successful in this course. You must
want to learn and be prepared to put in
the hours practicing.
At the end of the HNC course I had
learned a lot but realised I did not
have enough work experience. Over
the summer I took on two work
placements. One with the Big Blue
Dog Agency and the other with the
marketing team in Ayrshire College. It
has been great to see the difference
between working for an agency and
being part of an in-house design team.
I’ve had the opportunity to work on
great projects such as the smoke
free campus campaign, design a logo
for the volleyball club and create a
magazine for the time capsule that will
be placed in the new campus.
This experience has helped me to
enhance my skills and I have learned
to slow down and make sure my work
is polished and to a high standard for
the customer. I’ve also had experience
of meeting clients, understanding their
needs and dealing with feedback.
I have got such a lot out of the
experience and it has cemented the
choice to explore a career in visual art.
I have finally found what it is I want
to do.
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