Conor Dowds (17) from Moira, had heard about SERC from his careers teacher, but it was a visit to an open evening which persuaded him to enrol. He says,
“I knew I wanted a vocational course after completing my GCSEs, and people in my family are plumbers so I thought I would find out about training opportunities. I came along to an open evening with my mother and found out about the traineeship, met the tutor and saw the workshop. On top of the professional facilities, I just thought the college seemed a nice place - and it is!”
As soon as he got his GCSE results last August, Conor came up and enrolled on the Level 2 Traineeship in Plumbing. He knew a few other people who were progressing to SERC, but none were in his class - though he says this didn’t matter:
“I very quickly made friends on my course, and they become some of the most important people in your life. It was different from school - a big change, but I would much rather be working hands-on with copper pipes than sitting and writing – in my opinion that’s much more enjoyable. There is still written work, but for me the best part of the course is definitely the practical, such as working on boiler systems.”
Conor hasn’t been able to fit in a work placement yet as he juggles his course with a passionate commitment to boxing. He explains,
“I’ve been boxing from a young age. It takes up a lot of my time so managing that and my course is another skill I have learnt. I have to balance training six nights a week with my coursework. I also try to be disciplined with healthy eating and getting enough sleep. I box now at Immaculata ABC in Belfast, and I have represented Ireland in Europe. SERC has been very good if I need time to travel to competitions.
“For both the course and the boxing, you have to be focussed and disciplined – and they are also similar in that you have to enjoy it to do well at it! I want to do well in sport and I also want to progress in plumbing - the next step for me would be a plumbing apprenticeship, but I have another year yet on the traineeship, when I can spend more time in the workshop and continue to improve. The facilities are great and I would recommend SERC to anyone who is interested in learning about plumbing!”
