ON WEDNESDAY, 9 January, some of our Year 8 students at Everest Community Academy were invited to visit the University of Winchester's campus to get a taste of higher education and to see if it was an option for their future.

Many people might think that university is light years away from where the Year 8s are now, however, it was a great educational experience for them.

They were able to experience workshops,  such as a heated politics debate and what it is like to study as a university student at Winchester, plus  the incredible diversity in available courses, both traditional degree-based and apprenticeship.

The tour of the modern campus was very impressive and gave a great insight of what university is like. This then gave them a chance to reflect about whether university was an option in the future.

We were also invited to take our Year 10 students, on Friday, 11 January. Whilst they still have a little while to go before they need to consider this option, we thought it would be a great opportunity to give them a head start.

During the visit students were encouraged to engage in developing key skills within the university.

They took part in a number of sessions designed to help them successfully complete their themed project task that they were given when they arrived.

Everyone at Everest hopes to see many students attending university with bright futures ahead of them.

Overall the trip was a great experience for both year groups and we hope to see more of Winchester University in the near future.

By Bethany Fletcher and Courtney Little