Investigating biodiversity, boosting confidence and looking towards a bright future – a paid internship and mentor at Diageo in Elgin had a big impact on Chloe.
“Before Career Ready, I was pretty low on confidence,” says Elgin High School student Chloe Campbell. “I didn’t like getting in contact with people I didn’t know. I never spoke up when I wasn’t happy about something, and I was nervous about what to do if I didn’t get the exam results to get into university.”
With the support of her mentor Claire – Site Operations Manager at Diageo – and a four-week paid internship at the Benrinnes Distillery under her belt, Chloe’s feeling much more confident about her future.
An amazing experience
“My internship helped me a lot in understanding what I want out of a workplace,” she says. “I absolutely loved learning about the distillery process and took every chance I got to shadow my mentor, Claire, while she was working.
“I got to interact with contractors and see their work. I liked walking around the distillery and learning about everyone’s work. I was also able to quiz some of the team on their career journeys, and what led them to where they are now.
“Speaking to people who work there helped me see university is not the only option, there are other career opportunities.
“My confidence had skyrocketed. The internship has been such an amazing experience and something that opens you up to so many opportunities and helps give you an insight into full time working.”
Boosting biodiversity on site
During her internship, Chloe took on a project to investigate ways to embrace biodiversity at the distillery. She spotted some quick opportunities to create a welcoming habitat for local wildlife.
“I had a budget and was able to implement squirrel boxes and bug hotels,” she says. “I also looked into getting beehives for the site – something I wasn’t able to implement during the internship but was still very fun and educational.
“I was also able to update the aesthetics of the site by painting a memorial bench and railings.
“I really enjoyed doing this. I also visited the nearby Cardhu distillery, which helped give me ideas of things I could do at Benrinnes.”
Exploring different futures
The conversations that Chloe had with colleagues and her mentor Claire have helped her to explore different possibilities for life after school.
“My mentor Claire was very encouraging for me to apply for opportunities which will help me in future,” she explains.
“When I go back into Sixth Year, I’m going to get work experience at a local primary school on Tuesday afternoons and go to college on Wednesdays to study criminology to help me understand what I like, and what I dislike for my future.
“I feel so much more relaxed about my exam results, and there’s life beyond a degree. I can still be successful with or without going to uni.”
