This year two student ambassadors were selected to represent the Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT), Aaron Brook and Douglas Mugweni.
In this profile piece, we are proud to introduce Aaron Brook, who is currently studying EIT’s 52708WA - Advanced Diploma of Industrial Automation. An accomplished Instrument Reliability Specialist, Aaron has spent several years combining his career with continued education.
With previous post-trade qualifications earned in a range of fields including leadership and management, project management, work health and safety, hazardous area installation, maintenance and inspection and audio engineering, EIT is just the latest addition to Aaron’s learning ventures.
“EIT had been on my radar for about 10 years, but I was hesitant about giving up my time and wondered whether the learning, from an online course, could effectively transfer to the real world,” he shared.
“In reality, there is always time if you’ve got the interest, and the online learning applications and platform have proven to be really effective and accessible.”
Aaron says his career in engineering was inevitable; he tinkered with everything as a child and this led to a desire to know how it all worked.
Despite finding maths and overly theoretical topics tedious while growing up, Aaron understands now that these go with the territory. His resolve to turn curiosity into something more concrete led him to pursue engineering.
“Engineering for me is about knowing your boundaries and doing your best to find solutions to fit your needs. So, there’s space in the field where you’ve got to be incredibly pragmatic, but also plenty of room to get creative.”
Currently living and working in Dubai, Aaron’s engineering career has allowed him to amass an impressive list of global experiences, covering Australia, Antarctica, and the Middle East.
“I worked in Antarctica between 2017 and 2018 and the experiences I had down there I’ll remember for the rest of my life. The cold of course has its own unique challenges, but having to re-plan work to fit around the needs of the wildlife was always an interesting challenge.”
His extensive international experience allowed Aaron to gain a valuable understanding of the importance of adapting work for the future of industry. Making EIT’s 52708WA – Advanced Diploma of Industrial Automation, a logical step forward in his studying journey.
“(Industrial Automation) is an ever-changing and diverse field that continues to grow as system and device capabilities expand. It’s exciting to be part of an industry that’s becoming incorporated more into our personal lives each day,” he shared.
“It’s been a bit of an eye-opener to see how critical automation is, and integral to the field of engineering.”
As he nears the end of his studies at EIT, Aaron has been able to reflect on how the program has enhanced his engineering skills and career approach.
“The course has covered a broad range of topics, so I’ve been exposed to facets of the field that I previously didn’t give much thought to.”
It’s been a bit of an eye-opener to see the discipline from a more comprehensive view and how important every part is,” he said.
Looking forward to the future, Aaron is hoping to make the move to Germany when COVID-19 restrictions ease. Until then, EIT’s online delivery model will keep him busy, as well as a myriad of other hobbies.
“As I look at the three (guitars) beside my desk I can see the layer of dust on each one getting thicker by the day,” he laughs.
We are very proud to introduce Aaron Brook as one of our 2021 Student Ambassadors. His dedication and motivation to lifelong learning is an admirable quality that we should all strive for. We wish him luck for the coming year and will continue to follow his journey to more elevated positions within the engineering sector.
Please look out for our profile on Douglas Mugweni, our second 2021 Student Ambassador.
