The future of ICT looks bright for Fujitsu’s award-winning Sarah Gillespie

Fujitsu, one of Northern Ireland’s largest ICT employers, has congratulated one of its colleagues, Sarah Gillespie on being named ‘Higher Level Apprentice of the Year’ at the 2018 Department for the Economy’s Apprentice of the Year Awards.

 

A qualified pharmacist, Sarah had no IT experience when she decided to sign up to the apprenticeship programme delivered by Fujitsu and Belfast Met. Quickly recognising the many benefits of an ‘earning while learning’ approach, Sarah worked hard to complete a Level 3 apprenticeship and is now a member of Fujitsu’s Shared Services team and helps resolve technical issues on behalf of customers across the business.

 

Studying part time for a foundation degree in Software Engineering at North West Regional College, Sarah has achieved the highest grades this year for Programming across the course.

 

Receiving her award from the Department’s Permanent Secretary Noel Lavery and business personality, Sarah Travers, Sarah Gillespie said; “It is a huge honour to be recognised as an Apprentice of the Year, and I’m grateful to the support of Fujitsu and my tutors at North West Regional College for their ongoing encouragement and guidance. I think it’s important for those in the tech sector, especially apprentices, to shine a light on what it’s like to work in industry and help motivate students into the ever-evolving, fast paced world of ICT and the Apprentice of the Year Awards are a great way to do that.”

 

Congratulating Sarah, Fujitsu’s Principal Consultant Sinead Dillon said; “As a company we are committed to nurturing and supporting the next generation of technology leaders, Sarah embodies the hard work, determination and we are delighted her commitment continues to be recognised.

As a company, our focus is on creating a highly skilled workforce through a range of initiatives and support including better pathways into IT such as our apprenticeship courses – designed to give young people practical workplace experience and insight into how businesses operate which can be hard to come by in a classroom environment.

 

“Sarah’s not only a fantastic ambassador for our business but for the sector as a whole and we look forward to seeing more young people like her embark on a rewarding and fulfilling career in technology.”

 

Fujitsu invites students and teachers keen to learn more about a career in the IT to the Bring IT ON Girls Event for Years 11 & 12 in Belfast on 5^th December and in Derry~Londonderry on 7^th December.

 

Sarah will be attending the Derry~Londonderry event where she will offer advice on the best steps to kick-start a career in ICT. For more information, please contact bringiton@belfastmet.ac.uk .