From the moment I joined Sydenham High in year 8 from another school, I was welcomed into a family that I knew would push me to thrive academically, but also allow me to be a well-rounded student.

Sydenham High helped prepare me for life after school in a magnitude of different ways. By always allowing me to try new ideas, run my own projects and clubs it allowed me to develop a key skill needed in the word of work – innovation.

In an ever changing environment, we need to always be able to adapt, change our style and the way we think. With a variety of career fairs, a range of extra curricular activities and several lectures from external speakers, I was able to learn so much about how I can make sure I can do this. At the time, I didn’t realise how valuable these opportunities would be. Perhaps one I took most for granted was learning sign language – a skill I never thought I would use until I joined the world of work.

In year 12 Sydenham allowed me to run a National STEM Competition (#700STEMChallenge) and through the immense amount of support they gave me, I was able to secure very high-flying judges, including two from Ernst and Young. It was through these two women that I learned about the EY Apprenticeship scheme. As I looked into this opportunity further, I realised it was something I couldn’t let slip away. Always believing that to be successful I had to go to university, Sydenham helped me discover that this was far from the truth. Now, I am working at one of the Big 4 accounting firms, working towards being a qualified chartered accountant at 22, saving towards a house and not having any debt. The experiences I have at such a young age as a result of this apprenticeship are invaluable and everyone at Sydenham encouraged me to grab this opportunity and make a decision I know that I will never regret. With the guidance from Sydenham I now have not just gone from school to a job, but to a career for life.