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Meet one of Petroc’s rising stars

Matt Hitchins

Petroc’s Matt Hitchins certainly has a bright future working at the college.

The 22-year-old has just clinched the job of Pastoral Tutor at the Barnstaple Campus and he’s looking even further ahead to becoming a lecturer and rising even further through the ranks.

Matt is one of eight young people Petroc has employed as apprentice administrators, since 2009. All of them have progressed through their training, working in all different parts of the organisation, to become permanent members of staff.

And they’ve been tipped for the very top – Petroc’s Principal, David Dodd says he’d love for one of the apprentices to have his job, one day.

“I wouldn’t mind it,” was Matt’s reaction when asked if he fancies the role of Principal. “I want to progress as far as I can and be the best I can be, so who knows?”

In the meantime, he’s the first of the former apprentices to move from an admin’ role into another aspect of college life and he has a clear set of goals for the next few years.

His ambition is to teach business, following a Foundation Degree and teacher training alongside his role as a Pastoral Tutor.

“I’m really looking forward to looking after A Level students, including everything from sex education and drug awareness to university applications,” said Matt, who studied at the college after leaving school in Pilton.

He progressed to Bath Spa University but eventually left because Higher Education (HE) wasn’t right for him at the time.

“I didn’t know there were any other options after A Levels,” he added.

“Back then, nobody told me the college did degrees but I’ll be able to tell students there are many other opportunities available to them, including HE at home and apprenticeships.

Now he’s happy to be working and studying for a Foundation Degree in Business and Management.

“I put my all into the interview for my new job but I told them if I couldn’t do the degree I didn’t want it,” he said.

“I wouldn’t be able to afford to go away to university and do a degree now, so it’s really important to me to be able to stay in North Devon and achieve the qualifications I need to get where I want to be.”

If you are interested in studying for a Foundation Degree or any other course at Petroc, please call the Guidance Centre on 01271 338125 or look at our Higher Education pages.