SETA is in pole position for engineering on the South Coast

Sorsha, a female engineering apprentice studying at The Southampton Engineering Association (SETA) is on the starting grid for a great engineering career with Formula 1®.

Sorsha was one of two engineering apprentices with Formula 1®, who took time out of the workshop to meet Stefano Domenicali, President & CEO of Formula 1®, in London HQ recently. The afternoon was whirlwind of activity with two film crews in attendance, including Sky and Formula 1®, who were capturing footage of the day, and interviewing Stefano about the programme.

Sorsha said “What an amazing day! Filled with nerves and excitement all in one! Meeting Stefano and the team was really inspirational.”

She added “I feel a great deal of responsibility doing this apprenticeship. I am one of four girls here at SETA and the only woman of colour. It is important to have representation and diversity, and have that reflected especially somewhere you are working. It is important that other girls like me can see what can be achieved and believe that they can do this too. I wish I had more role models when I was growing up.”

Ultimately this programme could enable Sorsha to have the opportunity to travel the world supporting the race, which is incredibly exciting. Ahead of this she is spending a year at SETA working alongside apprentices from local employers completing their off-the-job training. As an apprentice 20% of her overall time will be spent developing the skills, knowledge and behaviours relevant to her role required to successfully achieve her apprenticeship.

During her workshop training she will cover a variety of engineering subjects including benchfitting skills, milling, turning, welding, sheet metal work, as well as electronics, PLCs and electrical wiring to name a few areas, just as thousands of apprentices before her over the fifty years that SETA has been open.

She will also complete classroom based study at SETA as she works towards a BTEC in General Engineering which supports the theoretical knowledge required to attain their four year apprenticeship.

Back with Formula 1® she will have the opportunity to further the knowledge gained at SETA and put into practise the skills in real life situations. This on-the-job training will be vital in building upon the skills essential in order to pass the independently assessed End Point Assessment (EPA) before becoming a fully fledged Engineer on the first rung of her career ladder with Formula 1®.

Watch Sorsha's video case study to see what she has been getting up to during her time at SETA.

Have a look at our current vacancies if you have been inspired by Sorsha.