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City of Glasgow graduates take steps towards success
Having benefited from City of Glasgow College’s state-of-the-art facilities, inspirational courses and professional connections, graduates are now preparing to take centre stage , writes Agnes Stevenson Graduation ceremonies are taking place today for students at City of Glasgow College, Scotland’s leading centre of learning for technological and professional skills. Those stepping up to the podium in the Royal Concert Hall have recently completed studies from across the college’s faculties, which include Creative Industries, Maritime, Construction, Social Sciences, Social Care, Sport and Leisure and Travel and Tourism. With state-of-the-art facilities, excellence in teaching and a change-led approach, City of Glasgow College has transformed the experience of education for students from all backgrounds and its inclusive, diverse and supportive community is helping students to achieve their career ambitions and gain skills that will set them apart in the job market. Amongst today’s graduates is the first non-university student to win a prestigious Marketing Society ‘Star Award’. Advertising & PR student Stuart McAulay was awarded the accolade after surviving intense competition from finalists from universities across the country. He was then selected to attend The Marketing Society Scotland’s Apprentice Day where he was successful in being awarded a paid placement at Edrington UK. Stuart says the support from his lecturers was crucial to his success. “The opportunity to compete as part of The Marketing Society’s Marketing Star Student award was such a valuable experience and to then go on to win was only possible for me from the hard work and dedication of all my lecturers at City of Glasgow College. The work that I produced for the award was only possible through the skills they had taught me. Now the chance to begin my internship at such a large and prestigious company such as Edrington UK is unbelievable, and I am so excited to further my career in marketing and go forward from here.”The focus at City is on preparing students for the real world and feedback from industry partners consistently praises the College’s graduates for being ‘work ready’. City takes a practical approach to learning and teaching, with industry-shaped courses, professional connections and state-of-the-art facilities to ensure that graduates are equipped with the most in-demand skills employers and universities want and need. From working on live industry projects to experiencing commercial environments on campus, every possible step is taken to ensure that graduates are prepared for the industries they enter and on graduation day it is hugely rewarding for lecturing staff to see students collect their certificates, diplomas and degrees and to share in their success. It’s also a source of pride to welcome back College Alumni so they can share words of motivation, wisdom and encouragement with today’s graduates and this year the College welcomes back Award-Winning Filmmaker, Producer, Director & Writer Kirsty O’Donnell. Originally from Glasgow and now based in New York, Kirsty is best known for her award winning narrative short film “Millie Moon” (2021) which she wrote, produced, and directed. Kirsty works in the fiction and non-fiction space splitting her time between the United Kingdom and the United States of America. At school Kirsty’s struggled with an undiagnosed learning difficulty and it was only when she learned about her condition at the age of 17 that she began to thrive in education, graduating initially from City of Glasgow College in 2014 with a Diploma in Business, before gaining a Marketing and Business Law joint honours degree from the University of Strathclyde. Kirsty then headed to New York City where she studied at the New York School of Visual Arts graduating with a BFA in Film with Honours. Since then her work has been included in over 29 film festivals worldwide and has won multiple awards. Kirsty’s experience is tangible evidence of the progression pathways that City of Glasgow College provides and for many students their learning journey doesn’t end when they leave, as the College offers guaranteed progression to four Scottish universities, enabling students to gain a degree in their chosen field, with many transferring directly into third year of university. The College’s links with many different industry sectors are a key part of the successful outcomes achieved by a high number of students, and so too are on-site facilities that include industry-standard TV and radio studios, creative design and photography suites, a Sport Scotland sports complex, 16 professional kitchens and the first 360 degree shipping simulation suite in Scotland, capable of recreating anything from a Polar ice field to Pacific waves. The latter is part of the Nautical and STEM faculty at the College’s Riverside Campus and City is proud of its reputation for delivering world class education and training to engineers, seafarers and construction professionals. The College hosted the International Maritime Hub at Cop26 and its industry partners include the Scottish Maritime Cluster and the wider maritime sector, delivering apprenticeships for leading shipbuilders such as BAE systems. The Riverside campus is a Maritime Centre of Excellence, training some 40% of the UK Merchant Navy Cadets each year and College Principal, Paul Little, is a passionate advocate for the Maritime sector, strongly committed to its continuing success. As Chair of the UK Shipbuilding Skills Taskforce he recently launched the UK Shipbuilding Skills Taskforce report “A Step Change for UK Shipbuilding Skills” at International Shipping Week. This by-industry- for-industry report is a key step in delivering the National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh and supporting our shipbuilders. More than 95% of all the UK’s imports and exports are delivered by sea, making the maritime industry the third largest revenue generator in the country and City of Glasgow College is one of the largest trainee centres in the country for those working both at sea and shoreside. For students at both Riverside Campus on Thistle Street, on the site of the old Nautical College, and City Campus on Cathedral Street, City of Glasgow College is a unique environment. The buildings themselves have been designed as sociable and accessible spaces that are conducive to study. City Campus has a vast triple-height library, a business centre where students and alumni can establish their first enterprises, a roof garden with two viewing terraces and Scholar’s fine dining restaurant, which is open to the public. Meanwhile Riverside Campus hosts the first women-only engineering and construction classes in Scotland. It has one of the most modern working ship’s engines in the country and it is among just a handful of colleges in the UK that is capable of delivering training to Chief Engineer and Master Mariner levels. As well as this, the College runs an extensive programme of conferences and seminars which are designed to address critical issues facing education, the environment and the world of work. www.cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk
Publish Date : 2023-11-20 15:01:05
Image and News Source : heraldscotland
