Shrewsbury College is celebrating a truly outstanding achievement this week, as one of our T Level in Health learners, Ester Sevim, has brought home GOLD from the WorldSkills National Finals 2025 in Health and Social Care - the highest honour a young professional can earn in UK vocational education.
And who better to talk us through the experience than our gold-medal winner herself?
“The National Finals took place in Newport. The final round was made up of 6 pressure tests, 4 planning tasks, one health poster, a reflection, and a multiple-choice questionnaire. These took place over 3 days, with the medal ceremony on the 4th day.”
Ester explained that the competition pushed her skills in ways she could never fully prepare for:
“I faced many challenges, particularly the curveballs in my pressure tests because I couldn’t plan for them; they really tested my ability to stay calm and problem solve. Through the support and reassurance of my tutors that came with me, I was able to have faith and confidence in myself. My teacher Lucy has helped me immensely with prep for the competition, both Lucy and Anne were my rocks during the week, providing moral support. They knew how to motivate me when I doubted myself!”
“My favourite part of the experience was building relationships with my fellow competitors, discovering how supportive and kind they all really were.”
And of course, the moment of victory:
“Winning gold means the world to me. It has allowed me to believe in myself and my skills, and has made me more determined than ever to strive for excellence and become an amazing midwife!”
We have absolutely no doubt that you will, Ester.
“Ester has been a pleasure to support during the competition. She has put in an extensive amount of work in the weeks leading up to the competition, at home as well as in college, meeting tutors after lesson time to practise her skills. She has conducted herself professionally and her enthusiasm for the subject has shone through, even during some high-stress pressure tests! We are all incredibly proud of her achievement, it's so well deserved!”