Because participation in this programme can be a transformative experience for competitors
Published: Tue 22 Nov 2022
Aaron first joined FIRST® LEGO® League through the IET at the age of 12 as part of a home-educated team sponsored by Bechtel.
He competed for three years and, in 2016, his team won a place to compete at the Open European Championships in Tenerife.
Years on, Aaron is still closely involved, helping to support regional tournaments, volunteering as a judge and referee and mentoring teams.
“Although I decided to stop competing, I basically couldn’t bring myself to stop participating in some form!
Every competition I’ve been part of I’ve thoroughly enjoyed, so I’ve kept doing them.”
FIRST® LEGO® League inspired Aaron to pursue a career in engineering.
He is now doing a degree apprenticeship in Software Engineering at Queen Mary University London.
Alongside his academic studies, he is working as an Apprentice Software Engineer at a global finance technology company.
“I can say with absolute certainty that without FIRST® LEGO® League, delivered by the IET, I wouldn’t be anywhere near the position I am in now.
I could’ve answered every single question in interviews and applications last year with my FIRST® LEGO® League experiences alone!
It can be a really transformative experience for the competitors.
I’ve seen young people who’ve never worked in a team before and wouldn’t be seen dead presenting in front of a crowd become fully involved in effective teamwork by the end of the season, and absolutely come to life in front of judges when presenting.
It’s a lovely thing to see!
I find myself now comparing a large amount of what I encounter in engineering to my experiences in the competition... core values, project management, working under pressure – FIRST® LEGO® League has prepared me for life as an engineer far better than anything else I’ve ever taken part in.”