Errin is an Experimental Scientist in the microscopy lab at Innovia, a company that makes plastic films.
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I’d say there’s a poverty of ambition where I live. People have the impression that all of the industry happens down south and they don’t know what opportunities there are in the local area. Lots of young people leave.
I joined the company I work for now straight from school and it was 100% the right choice for me. They paid for me to study a degree in Chemistry, and working and studying was much more appealing to me than the usual University route that schools tend to push.
I found out about mentoring through the STEM ambassador programme and thought it sounded interesting. I was already thinking about doing something to help improve social mobility, so it joined up nicely. It sounded like it wouldn’t be too taxing on my time.
I found it really rewarding. The company I work for are keen on employees doing something to give back to the community and it’s a good way of getting their name out there. I was amazed how ambitious some of these kids are – two wanted to do neuroscience! The other two were more unsure so needed a bit of support finding their path.
Some had specific questions like what are UCAS points and what’s a joint honours degree, whereas others wanted help with interview prep and personal statements. I talked to all of them about degree apprenticeships because they’re not always aware of it as an option.
Some were really confident; they had it all planned out and knew exactly what they wanted to talk to me about, while others were quite shy and introverted, and very worried about application processes. I told them that they were capable, and that I was shy at school but that confidence is something that can be grown over time.
The Brightside tech works really well and the kids are very engaged; I signed up to be helpful and the fact that they always had questions and responses made that easier. It helped me to know I was doing something right.
I think I had a positive impact on the kids I mentored through Brightside. They sent some lovely messages at the end, I even showed one of them to my parents! It gave me such a boost and made it feel really worthwhile. I think it’s natural for your job to seem quite routine when you’ve been doing it for a long time but my mentees found it really interesting, so it was good for me to take a step back and see how far I’ve come through someone else’s eyes.
I find giving back really motivating. I like doing something beneficial with my time and breaking out of my usual routine. For me, it was about challenging myself to use part of my spare time to have a positive impact, instead of chilling out in front of the TV. I spent about half an hour a night replying to their messages for the duration of the programme. I think all young people should have the opportunity to take part in mentoring, but especially those who don’t necessarily have the support at home. Even if they don’t have loads of questions, I think it’s nice for them to know that there’s someone there if they need them.
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If you want to make a positive impact on a young person’s life, visit this page to find out more about becoming an online mentor and sign up.
