Matt Dwyer

I heard about The Scholars Programme from a talk the Brilliant Club gave at the university. It was clear that they did important work to help students from low attainment backgrounds reach university, something I wanted to be a part of. Working with The Brilliant Club I have taught quantum mechanics and light-matter interactions to KS3 and KS4 pupils. Despite these topics being in-depth and challenging, the pupils were engaged and excited to learn. The training that The Brilliant Club provided to help design and deliver the tutorials was excellent and very helpful for my teaching practice going forward.   

The launch trips have always been top class, with the student ambassadors for the universities of Leeds and Manchester being super welcoming and positive. The tutorials at the university are also a great first experience, as it removes the pupils' apprehension about talking, so by the time we have the in-school tutorials it's hard to keep to time as they want to do so much in them. The pupils not only learnt about the theories of quantum mechanics and the wave function, but also gained high level skills in written communication and presenting their work.

The training in teaching practice I received from The Brilliant Club was a very high standard, and has been important in improve the teaching I do in labs and seminars with undergraduate students. I believe this can been seen in the changes I have brought into teaching in undergraduate labs. That focus on teaching practice, and the best way to help people learn, will be vital for any future career I may have.