Posted on: 29/11/2022
Posted on: 13/06/2016
Year 11 student, Dikra Azzouz Laalef, secures prestigious engineering aprenticeship with global technology company
Three years ago Dikra Azzouz Laalef arrived in England and at Cressex Community School speaking Spanish and Arabic but no English. However, she came with an iron will to succeed; to make the absolute most of the opportunities available to her. Fast forward to 2016 and it’s clear her determination and drive, plus the dedicated support of her teachers, has paid off. In the last two weeks, Dikra has been offered two prestigious engineering apprenticeships – one in the public sector, the other in the private sector. In securing one of them, she beat off six hundred other applicants, many of whom were twice her age, was the only girl to reach the interview stage and topped the test scores. Dikra so impressed the interview panel that she was called back immediately and was made an offer on the spot!
A justifiably proud Dikra now has her sights firmly set on a career in engineering. In September, she will be leaving High Wycombe and commencing her studies on an engineering course at Bournemouth and Poole College – the course/training element of her apprenticeship. The course and her accommodation will all be funded by Cobham plc, the international space, air, maritime and land technology and services provider with whom Dikra has decided to pursue her engineering career.
“I used to stay up to 3 am in the morning to complete my school work and improve my English”, said an excited Dikra when we caught up with her last week during a break in her GCSE exams. Now that’s dedication. There’s no doubt Dikra is a shining example of what can be achieved if you are determined enough and of what’s possible these days for girls in the field of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) . Everyone at Cressex wishes Dikra all the very best in the next stage of her career.
