Libby first heard about Lincoln UTC when she received a leaflet about the new school opening. She was immediately interested because it specialised in engineering and science, subjects she enjoyed a great deal. Libby was happy at her school and was about to start her GCSEs the following autumn, but she decided to go to the open day to find out more.

"I was really impressed with the equipment and loved the focus on engineering. I also enjoyed meeting the Principal who was really inspiring. At the end of the open day I knew I wanted to change schools and that the UTC was the right place for me."

Although her parents were initially concerned as Libby was just about to start her GCSEs, they were also impressed with the school and felt it was the right choice. Lisa Brooks, Libby’s mother said:

"We were worried about Libby changing to a brand new school but the curriculum, equipment, and the Principal, helped to reassure us. We thought it was the right choice for Libby."

Life at Lincoln UTC

Libby was offered a place at Lincoln UTC and started in September. Despite being nervous she made friends quickly and was delighted when her best friend from her previous school also joined. The environment was quite different at Lincoln and she found it much more mature.

"The atmosphere was much more friendly, we were treated as adults and wore business dress rather than traditional school uniform. We had a longer school day but this meant we could get our homework done before leaving to go home."

Libby enjoyed studying a raft of engineering subjects including design engineering and systems control and liked that they were linked to the real world. There were also opportunities to meet engineering employers, which helped to reinforce her interest in engineering.

Next Steps

In her second year Libby decided to apply to Dynex Semiconductor, a large engineering company that designs and manufactures semiconductors, for an apprenticeship. As she was also interested in business, she applied to become a Procurement Engineer. This is a highly technical role that requires knowledge of engineering and an understanding of business.

Libby secured an interview and undertook a gruelling recruitment process, which included a maths test, role playing task and a formal interview. At the end, Dynex offered the apprenticeship to Libby.

"I was really pleased to be offered the apprenticeship as I had to beat off much older competition. I think the experience at Lincoln helped to prepare me as I’d had lots of interview practice and was also very comfortable speaking to employers."

Libby will be undertaking a Level 3 Procurement Engineering Apprenticeship and is likely to be one of the youngest apprentices starting at Dynex. Following this, she hopes to stay with Dynex to develop her career in the company.

"I’m delighted to be getting started on my career with a company and role that is really exciting and just what I want. Lincoln UTC gave me the confidence, qualifications and experience to secure my apprenticeship and I’d recommend it to anyone who is interested in science and engineering."

Visit Lincoln UTC's website here

I started at Dynex in October 2009 when I was successful in being accepted on to an Electrical & Electronic Apprenticeship with Lincoln College. I was very happy to gain employment at Dynex as prior to this I was working in a contact centre which didn’t satisfy my career aims. When I saw the job I applied straight away – Dynex has a good reputation for their apprenticeship schemes and I have always had an interest in engineering. The apprenticeship included a day release at college, with 4 days per week in the workplace. I was seconded to various areas of the business in order to maximise my learning. Whilst working towards my HNC, I was also able to do extra evening courses funded by the Company. One particular course I enjoyed was on PLCs (Programmable Logic Controller). One of the secondments I undertook was in the IT Department, which I enjoyed and requested to stay in. This is the department that offered me a permanent job. I am responsible on a daily basis for dealing with IT Helpdesk queries (standard IT issues raised by employees) and supporting all business units with IT requirements. I have also been able to support a number of high profile projects including the development of the Company intranet and also implementing a project tracking system. I was also a core member of the team involved in a multi-function project to develop and implement an Enterprise Resource Planning system, which the whole business now uses. My longer term career plans are to increase my knowledge of software and database development techniques to be able to provide high quality software solutions for Dynex. The training that I am receiving at Dynex will help me to achieve this. 

Rebecca works for Dynex as a Customer Services Representative and she has been in this role since December 2012. Prior to this, Rebecca worked as a Manufacturing Operator within our clean room production areas. She has been with the business since March 2007.

I am the main point of contact for all our customers, responsible for dealing with requests for quotations for our products and then dealing with all subsequent orders. I am also responsible for returns and complaints and basically take care of the needs of our customers. I applied for a job within Dynex as I decided not to attend university; I wanted to obtain some work experience and planned to return into further education at a later stage. The reason I chose Dynex was I had family connections here my mother has worked for the company for over 25 years and also my grandmother before her. I started off in the company as a Manufacturing Operator within the wafer fab area and progressed through the department to become a principal operator within a few years. I then was able to apply for a new position within the business but a totally different role within a new department, this is the job I have now and to have a new challenge has been brilliant. My ambition for the future is to progress to management level, but firstly to obtain the relevant qualifications to help me achieve this. The main highlight of my employment was in 2011 when I was nominated to be Employee of the year due to my work within the wafer fab area. In January 2012 I went to China to visit our parent company CSR Times Electric; I was presented with an award during a ceremony. This was a fantastic life changing experience; I was taken to see the Great Wall of China and got to experience the wonderful rich culture that China has to offer. I was surprised to see the diverse mix of people who work at Dynex. Lots of different age groups and backgrounds and also there are many members of staff who have worked here for decades.  I found this encouraging as it shows me Dynex must be a good company to work for. I would encourage anyone wanting to apply to research the company’s history and also to understand what we do as business, some background about the products we make and the industry as a whole is beneficial regardless of the position you are applying for.