Back in August, we told the story of Erin, Alan and Connor, three of our Sports Coaching students who embarked on a working holiday to Australia.

Now, nearly halfway through their ten-month trip, we catch up with the trio and find out how they have adapted to life down under…

Working as swimming teachers and lifeguards at BlueFit, a leisure facility management company in Sydney, sounds like the opportunity of a lifetime, and that is exactly how Erin, Alan and Connor would describe it.

The work is amazing – there are so many opportunities to be trained in different areas. We love working in the sunshine and have made so many new friends along the way.

With their average day consisting of swimming coaching from 9am until 2pm and 3:30pm until 6:30pm, as well as lifeguarding, taking gym classes, café roles and maintenance work, Erin, Alan and Connor are constantly learning and upgrading their skills. Work hard, play hard is a rule they are living by, and the trio have managed to factor many activities into their busy schedules. Working at another fitness centre in Queensland allowed them to travel, and they have also experienced snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef and have booked a skydive for the near future.

Working and living in Australia has clearly given Erin, Alan and Connor the travel bug, and all three are keen to explore more places in the future. Qualifying in an area such as Sports Coaching has many benefits, with one being the opportunity to work abroad and experience new places and cultures. Erin, Alan and Connor are well aware that they wouldn’t be where they are now without the knowledge they gained at West College Scotland and the support they received from teaching staff, and they have one piece of advice for anyone who wishes to follow in their footsteps:

If anyone ever gets this opportunity, don’t think twice! DO IT – it’s the best thing you could ever do and you would be crazy to say no to such an opportunity.

To find out more about our Sports courses, and to apply, click here.