BSc Mathematics 1977
What was your first job?
I worked as a software developer at ICL.
What duties and skills were required in that role?
Training staff, customers and other instructors in intelligent network products. I developed and am still developing inter-personal skills.
What is your current job?
I’m an instructor at Alcatl-Lucent.
What has been your favourite job?
Starting up a new training department from scratch and putting it on the map.
What have been the turning points in your career?
Moving into training was one turning point in addition to two experiences of redundancy.
Do you have any regrets?
Yes, in my early career I become good at interacting with a computer at the expense of communicating with people. I also regret taking a gap year because I got out of the habit of studying.
What are you most proud of?
Apart from starting up a training department from scratch, I would say writing for magazines and I have had 4 books published. Also, although a cliché, I am really proud to be a dad to my daughter, now 21 and a graduate of UWE.
What advice would you give to students?
Keep focusing on the course, learn self-discipline but also get involved with the community. It's all good experience.
If you could start again, what would you do differently?
Apart from studying much harder, I would also have looked into something like education and learning together with Maths. I've been teaching for most of my career now.
What are you future career plans?
Realistically, I expect to continue working in training for the remainder of my career. After retirement, I hope to focus more on writing.
Do you have much involvement in the alumni community?
Honestly, I’m quite passive today. However, with the internet, I may well connect with former students and anyone interested in astronomy, training and teaching.