Wildlife Biologist Ambitions for Grace

Grace Marshall, (17), is currently completing the Level 2 Traineeship in Animal Care at SERC’s Lisburn Campus.

Following her GCSEs at Portadown College, Grace decided that she wanted to progress to college and chose SERC’s Lisburn Campus when she discovered they offered a range of Animal Care courses. She said, “I came along to an open day with one of the girls from my school.   We were both interested in the Level 2 Traineeship in Animal Care course, and we were accepted onto the course.   We got to meet Hannah, one of the tutors and it was great to see the science rooms, the animal house and all the facilities."

She added, “I think from about third year in school I had become more interested in animals and had my heart set in following this pathway.   The best part of the course at SERC is getting the chance to handle the different animals.  I have also been really interested in finding out about different animal behaviours, how they communicate with us, and the science is great as we are learning about the organ of different animals and their digestive systems.”

Grace completes a placement as part of her course and is based at C & J’s Animal Park in Portadown.  She said, “At my placement they have reptiles including bearded dragons, snakes and crocodiles, and also lemurs and meerkats. I think both the course and the placement have influenced my ambitions, as right now I am thinking about a career as a wildlife biologist which would involve getting to work and observing animals in their own habitat.   It will mean further study and I am aware of progression routes in SERC and for university."    

And it seems Grace is keen to learn about animals outside the classroom too.   She concluded. “I am particularly interested in snakes.    I hope to have one of my own shortly; I already have a dog, two gerbils and a goldfish.”

Register your interest in joining us on campus at our Open Evening on Thursday 6 June. Unlock your future #BetterOffAtSERC.