A student has secured his dream apprenticeship with Dyson three years after hearing about it during a school assembly.

Charlie Shaw from Didcot, who attends UTC Oxfordshire, is set to join the Dyson Institute of Engineering and Technology for a four-year MEng apprenticeship in Engineering.

He said: "I found out about this apprenticeship when I was in Year 10 from one of the engineering teachers at an assembly.

"I was inspired from that moment and I knew then I was going to try my best to get a place on that course."

UTC OxfordshireUTC Oxfordshire (Image: UTC Oxfordshire)

Speaking about Dyson, he added: "I love the way that the company has evolved over the years.

"It hasn’t stood still and many risks have been taken to get to where it is now as a multi-national business."

He explained what the apprenticeship will involve: “The first two years will be a general overview of the main genres of engineering, where I will go on three-to-six-month rotations of projects.

"After the second year I will choose a subsection to specialise in – either software engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical and electronics engineering or electromechanical engineering. 

“I am looking forward to doing as much as I can. I will rotate throughout modules working on real projects alongside real engineers, and I cannot wait to gain the most experience as I possibly can from lecturers, future colleagues and classmates.

"On a personal level I’m looking forward to learning and earning some money."

He will spend his first year living on campus in a modular pod in the Dyson Village.

Roughly a third of his time will be spent in lectures, and the rest working on live projects at Dyson.

He said: "In the third year I will get the opportunity to work in Singapore for six months on placement to the manufacturing HQ."

Explaining why he choose engineering, he said: "It’s an ever-growing industry that brings new challenges daily.

"The term 'engineer' is so vast that it gives anyone the opportunity to be what they want and is a gift to those who want to solve problems and be a part of developing a better world."

The apprenticeship application process involved maths tests and an online interview.

He continued: "Being at UTC was the biggest aid to me - being able to speak about different life experiences that set me apart from everyone else.

“UTC Oxfordshire runs on a culture of trust, which gave me and my friends the freedom to experiment and grow our own minds the way that we wanted over a set curriculum.

"I would recommend to anyone - I really don’t know where I’d be without it.”

His advice to others is to "believe that you can do anything" as "this is the mindset that you need to have", and to "keep pushing and never give up on what you want”.