Former NRC students selected for Skills Olympics

They both completed a Foundation Degree in Engineering, graduating with distinction in June 2023.

WorldSkills, known as the ‘Skills Olympics’ is the world’s largest skills competition. It takes place every two years and this year, just hours after the Olympic flame is extinguished in Paris, Team UK will be aiming for glory on the skills world stage in Lyon.

Comprising 31 of the finest students and apprentices from across Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, Team UK is selected, trained, and managed by WorldSkills UK. All aged under 25 years, the members of Team UK will be competing for gold, silver, or bronze medals in a total of 27 skill categories which include robot systems integration, autobody repair, cabinet making, electrical installation, cyber security, renewable energy, digital construction, cooking, hairdressing, painting and decorating.

Securing their place on Team UK represents months of training and competitions at local, regional, national, and international level for Charlie and Jason, who first caught the attention of the international selectors when they secured gold medals in industrial robotics at the WorldSkills UK national finals back in November 2022.

Following this success, they were selected to compete in EuroSkills 2023 competition in Gdansk where they were awarded a Robot Systems Integration Medallion of Excellence, which is recognition that they had reached the highest international standard in the skill.

Charlie said he was really enjoying his WorldSkills experience: “It has been great fun representing WorldSkills UK in the international competitions in Gdansk and I am looking forward to competing in Lyon, France this September,” he said.

“I had an opportunity to undertake worldclass training in this period that has helped develop my skills greatly along the way and hope hopefully will give me enough knowledge o get a medal in Lyon.”

Jason is crrently working as a mechatronics engineer with AES Global in Cookstown. Following their success in Gdansk, Jason postponed his plans to complete a BEng degree in Mechatronics in Denmark so he could concentrate on preparing for the WorldSkills international competition in Lyon.

He said he felt honoured to be selected to represent Team UK on the world stage in Lyon and like Charlie, Jason hopes all their training will pay off handsome dividends in September:

“It’s been an immensely challenging journey so far with many trials and tribulations, but I have nevertheless enjoyed the experience. I look forward to showing off our skills at the international stage, and hopefully picking up a medal at the end,” he said.

Northern Regional College’s exemplary record in WorldSkills competitions in industrial robotics and robot systems integration is in no small part due to the dedication and commitment of engineering lecturer, Karla Kosch, who meticulously prepares her students for WorldSkills competitions.

Karla is the current Training Manager in Robot Systems Integration for WorldSkills UK and was Deputy Chief Expert for EuroSkills 2023. She is also the Chief Expert for the international competitions in Lyon this September.

Karla said that Charlie and Jason had come through an exhaustive selection process which started back in November 2022 when they were gold medal winners at the WorldSkills UK national finals.

She added: "Their selection is the culmination of many months of competing and training. They will have learnt a lot from the experience of Adam and Cameron, and I am confident that in years to come they all will still be reaping the rewards of their remarkable WorldSkills journey.”

Adding his congratulations, Mel Higgins, Principal and Chief Executive of Northern Regional College and trustee of WorldSkills UK said: “Charlie and Jason have enjoyed tremendous success in the WorldSkills series of competitions and I wish them well as they embark on the next stage of their journey.

“Their success to date highlights the wealth of talent we have at the College and demonstrates how our dedicated staff are helping to nurture that talent.”