Jonathan and Scott are AoC Student of the Year award finalists

An aspiring film-maker and an accountant have been named as finalists in the Association of Colleges Student of the Year awards.

Jonathan Morris is a finalist in the higher education category of the national awards, sponsored by Reed.  He is currently studying a HND in Creative Media Production as part of a student journey that began with an Entry Level 3 course in Creative Media.

He hopes to complete a full bachelor’s degree and then work as a filmmaker and editor.

And Scott Yarrington is a finalist in the adult student category, sponsored by Pearson.

Scott, a former army lance corporal returned to education in order to study for a career in accounting.  He has been studying English, maths and book-keeping.

Scott is also training for a role as a public speaker and workshop facilitator on behalf of Blesma, a charity that supports limbless veterans like himself.

Sally Dicketts, President of the Association of Colleges, said: The standard of entries this year was incredibly high and all the nominated students deserve praise for the contribution they make to their colleges. It is inspiring to hear the stories from a range of students and colleges each year and the awards are an opportunity to highlight their outstanding achievements. The finalists this year have done fantastically well to reach this stage and I look forward to seeing them all at the awards evening at annual conference.”

The awards will be announced on 8 February during the Association of Colleges’ Annual Conference. Annual conference showcases the ways that colleges are transforming the lives of more than two million people across England and how vital colleges are to the future of the British economy in the 21st century.

The judging panel was made up of members of the AoC Charitable Trust Board, AoC President and chaired by Kirsti Lord (AoC Deputy Chief Executive-Member Services). All the judges were very impressed by the variety of inspirational stories and the success achieved by the students.