7 December 2022

"My son Abdullah has always been interested in all things engineering, especially aerospace, automobiles and drone technology, which occupied his time growing up. 

I wasn't aware of the Arkwright scholarship until his school recognised Abdullah as a worthy candidate and encouraged him to apply.  The scholarship was something he aspired to, as his friend was an alumnus and spoke of the great opportunities being a scholar affords.

The application process provided structure to his passion and allowed him to hone into the wider aspect of project work and apply his focus to areas beyond physical engineering.  Abdullah was always more hands-on in problem solving and finding solutions; however the planning/design process was an area which needed developing.  The scholarship application was well rounded and enabled him to develop his soft skills, alongside the technical process of project development.

His confidence grew as he learnt new skills and passed through the stages of the application process.  He took full responsibility of his application (with gentle nudges from his teacher keeping him on track to meet deadlines!).  I started to see a clearer direction from him towards his future career choices and felt proud at how he juggled his studies, exams and application.

Abdullah had incredible self-belief instilled into him from his Engineering teacher, Mrs Ibrahim, at Blackburn Central High School. We feel the relationship that developed between him, his teacher and the Arkwright representative contributed towards Abdullah reaching his potential and was a pivotal part of the process.

The ceremony was the perfect way to celebrate the prestigious award, achievement of the young scholars and we felt very privileged being amongst incredibly talented individuals.  The speakers were highly motivating and ignited the spark in Abdullah to dream even bigger and we left the ceremony with a message of 'Don't become complacent, be proactive and persevere', exactly what Abdullah needed to hear to achieve greater things.               

I feel the mentorship over the next two years will help Abdullah remain focussed and guide him in making the best choices for the next stage in his further education.  Also, the experience gained from the real-life engineering opportunities will develop both his personal and professional skills.

I would like to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone at Arkwright Engineering for the amazing programme and for welcoming Abdullah into the Arkwright family."