"Although the BTEC course was still an academic course, it never felt focused on academic objectives. It was more about harnessing your creativity..."

Tell us more about your job and the video game industry.

The video game industry is a hugely diverse industry, where most of the people I meet come from totally different backgrounds and their career paths vary wildly. I think it’s important for all of us to share where we started from, because sometimes it inspires someone in a similar position who has never thought about pursuing a career in audio before.

For me, doing the BTEC was my first step into a successful career as a sound designer for games. My path into my current job has been an incredible journey: going from someone who just enjoyed playing guitar, to a paid performing musician, to a producer and composer, and now to a sound designer.

Did you always know what kind of job you wanted to do?

I’ve always loved music and I decided I wanted to do something with music for my career, be it performance, teaching, composing, or something similar. I never thought I would end up in audio for games, but I’m so glad I did.

The great thing about the BTEC was that it gave me a strong foundation for any of those career paths, because we learned about all aspects of the music process. We formed bands, we learned songs and played gigs. We performed in pit bands for theatre shows, we learned how to use a recording studio, studied music theory, composition and much more. That structure allows you to explore all areas of music in a free and creative environment and discover what you really gravitate towards.

Going to university as my next step certainly built on that knowledge, but I couldn’t have attended the university I did without doing my BTEC course and working hard to get a good grade. The fact that I had such a varied education on the BTEC course also prepared me well for university, as I already had some experience in everything I continued to study throughout my degree.

What was the most challenging thing about your BTEC course?

I think the most challenging thing was my lack of confidence. To thrive in that environment, you need to build some confidence in yourself as you’re frequently performing on stage and in front of your peers. Up until I joined the course, music had been a very personal thing for me and I didn’t have much gigging experience, so to take that into a very public setting was definitely a challenge. But most of us were in the same boat, so we were all supportive of each other and encouraged each other to be the best we could be.

All those instances where I felt nervous were essential character-building moments for me and enabled me to thrive from then on. Every time I fought past those nerves helped to strengthen my self-esteem, which later led to me being able to perform shows in front of hundreds of people, which is something I never thought I would do.

Doing the BTEC also brought me into a world of other musicians and gave me a collaborative environment, that helped me to grow and improve much faster than I ever would have just trying to teach myself. That environment was paramount in teaching me about collaborating and performing with other musicians, which I went on to do a lot of in the years following.

When I started the course, I had no intentions of going to university afterwards, but I later changed my mind. I ended up applying and being accepted by one of the most prestigious music universities in the UK, and I would not have been able to do that without both the qualifications and experience that I gained with the BTEC.

What was the most interesting thing you learnt in your BTEC course?

The most interesting thing was probably learning music theory. I spent several weeks in a pit band for West Side Story – a score riddled with extended chords and interesting harmony. My teacher, Marc, was phenomenal at guiding us through that performance, even though it was my first time performing in a pit band. I loved every minute of it and a lot of that knowledge formed my future years of music composition and enabled me to do the music theory test I later had for my degree at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA).

Would you recommend a BTEC to other students, and if so, why?

Absolutely. The one piece of advice I will give is that you will get out what you put in. No one is going to hold your hand in the music industry, but they will lend you a hand to get over any hurdles you face. The BTEC gives you all the support, education and advice you need, and the tutors are great at helping you understand what your goals are and how to reach them. But, ultimately, you can only reach those goals if you’re willing to put the work in.

Take advantage of the time you have there, use the facilities, form some bands, get to know people and learn as much as you can. Doing those things and working hard was essential for me, getting the knowledge and experience I needed to carry on to university and eventually get my dream job.

"The BTEC gives you all the support, education, and advice you need..."