Speaker A
[Music] I want to work for an animal charity. I want to be an RSPCA officer. I want to go to university to study animal behaviour. I chose to come to East Ireland College because it has a lot of opportunity and choice. I really love animals. The animal care course at Eastern College is amazing because there's such a variety of opportunities, as well as a hands-on approach to teaching. Whatever level course the students are doing, they will always have practical days. The practical days involve working with the range of animals we have: the small animal care unit, where there's a range of exotics and small mammals, and then we have the raccoons and the wallabies. We're working with the animals, the pigs, the sheep. It's important to get that diversity because you have to have knowledge of all animals. Everyone sort of has a specialism. You can build on that, and they get the best experience. It's not all practical. We do a lot of classroom work, but that's really good because it gives us a good balance. We get them ready for university through the theory, whereas when you're at uni, you don't tend to get the practical experience. Every day is different when you're working with animals, and getting that experience is really valuable for them. We can choose where we want to do our own work experience. This year, I went into a dog groomers, which I love. We do have careers that have stemmed from their work placements. So, for example, Beamish, we have students going out there, and then they've actually got jobs out of that as well. The staff agree they are really supportive. We're really passionate about animal care and making sure our students are well prepared for their futures. Like, both moments happen every day with students. It's really nice to see them suddenly click and learn things. I feel like I belong here a lot more. Being at East Durham College makes me feel ready to go to university, to open my eyes to different jobs and careers I can have. I want to be a dog handler. I want to work in marine biology. I want to work for an animal charity. I don't know what I want to do, but I know where I want to start.
