Posted By David Hogg of Thales
My involvement with the Surrey SATRO started whilst I was studying for my A-Levels at school – Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Design Technology. As part of the Design Technology course, students were invited to exhibit their projects at various SATRO-organised events around the country. During my AS-Level year, I exhibited my Charles Rennie Mackintosh-inspired cube lamp at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London, and during my A-Level year, I exhibited my solar-powered autonomous gutter-cleaning robot at St. James’ Palace in London – both projects generating great interest amongst the attendees at the respective venues. As well as increasing the exposure of my work and myself, these events also allowed me to network with other students of my age, and they gave me the chance to see a fascinating array of A-Level projects, ranging from artistic products to highly-complex computer-controlled solutions to design problems.
During my studies at the University of Surrey (where I achieved a 1st class Honours degree in Electronic and Electrical Engineering), the Surrey SATRO helped arrange my sponsorship to help offset the enormous cost of attending University. As part of the sponsorship, I worked with the engineering giant, Thales (I worked for the Aerospace Division in South London, making Avionics products for civil / military aircraft / helicopters) for 10 weeks each summer between the years of University. This not only gave me a taste of life in the ‘working ‘world’, it also gave me an excellent insight into the workings of a large engineering company, and I was able to gain hands-on experience with many of the state-of-the-art products that were being developed. As well as the salary I was paid during these 10 week periods, Thales also gave me financial support during my time at the University. This extra money made a huge difference to the cost of attending University, and the sponsorship also gave me invaluable industrial experience to put on my CV.
Now in my second year of full-time employment with Thales, the Surrey SATRO is helping me develop my people skills by providing opportunities to work with school pupils of all ages, with activities ranging from supervising school children with technical / team-building challenges to representing Thales at careers fairs – getting out in the community and making children more aware of what it is like to be an engineer in the working world. This is essential as many of today’s school pupils are tending to opt for less technically-demanding subjects at GCSE, A-Level and beyond – a trend that can possibly be reversed if they are exposed to the exciting opportunities and prospects of working in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths from an early age. The courses / events run by the Surrey SATRO and other divisions of STEMNET (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths NETwork) are aimed at doing just that, and for the children to be able to work with past-pupils who are now in the engineering profession is sure to make a positive impression on them and their future career decisions.
