A 19-year-old from Lisburn has progressed from a Level 2 Traineeship in Mechanical Engineering to a Level 3 Apprenticeship in Mechatronic Engineering.

Dylan Burns completed GCSEs at St Patrick's Academy in Lisburn before enrolling at South Eastern Regional College for the traineeship.

During the traineeship, Burns spent two days per week on placement at Advanced Engineering outside Lisburn, where he worked on gear parts for shipping.

Burns has since moved to a Level 3 Apprenticeship NI in Mechatronic Engineering and is employed by Maha Ireland in Lisburn.

In his current role, Burns spends four days a week at work maintaining equipment for vehicle testing centres and one day at college.

Burns stated that the transition between the two programmes was straightforward and that he values the combination of practical work experience and classroom learning.

Burns said the smaller class sizes at college allow for more individual support from tutors.