Trail marker 9, the paths to learning. Every learner’s journey begins somewhere. And for many people in Dumfries and Galloway, that journey begins at college. Not always at the end of school, but often while they are still discovering what learning can do for them.

At Dumfries and Galloway College, education is a pathway that opens doors and creates new possibilities at every stage of life. The college has long believed that learning should be flexible, accessible, and connected to the needs of the community.

Douglas Dickson, current principal, talks about pathways to college.

“College Academy is probably one of the most important things that we do. I think it’s really important. I was brought up in a rural region, so I appreciate living in a rural location if you want to change things, you’ve got to change people and what they do. What it’s created is, it’s created access to education, and that is gonna make, fundamentally, change a rural region because it’s gonna allow people to be able to work, able to study, able to be economically active, and ultimately to benefit the region that they work in by being able to actually, when they work, spend in that region.”

Strong partnerships with local primary and secondary schools allow young people to experience college while they are still at school. Through workshops, vocational tasters, and school programs, students can explore subjects, industries, and careers in ways that traditional classrooms sometimes can not offer.

From the perspective of Delivering the Young Workforce, Graham Galloway contemplates the opportunities open to students.

“The college is obviously recognised as a local institution and runs a whole range of courses for young people to get involved in the world of work. That can range from construction, to business, to administration, to health and beauty, the cultural sector, these have all got inroads into the wider community in Dumfries and Galloway, and the college has very close links with local businesses who support the college, but equally, the college are putting out a trained workforce for local businesses to employ.”

This helps build confidence and ambition and allows learners to discover practical skills or creative interests, and possibly a new direction for their future. At Dumfries and Galloway College, this has helped create smoother transitions from school into further education, even apprenticeships or employment.

Current student, Keira, describes her arrival at college.

“So when I came to the college, I was like, shy, I wasn’t talking to anybody. I was really convinced that I was just going to spend all my time in the bathrooms, eating my lunch, just staying there until class started again, but it was easy to make friends straight away, especially because some of my friends from school and that had already came, but branching out as well is a lot easier because your lecturers get you to go and… get you to go and do activities with other people and you get told to partner up with people and you don’t really get the option if you don’t want to or that. So it’s just like, I think it’s just really nice for people that are shy a bit.”

For many students, college becomes a pathway into apprenticeships or careers in local industry or even self-employment. Others progress into university and study through partnerships here on the Crichton campus or beyond the region. What matters is that learners are supported at every stage of that journey.

Juliet McCulloch from Skills Development Scotland talks about the range of pathways open to learners in the region.

“There’s so many different routes and pathways now. You don’t have that linear straight from school, university, job. It’s still people do do that, but it’s a lot of individuals change jobs through their careers. There’s so many different routes and pathways. You’ve got your foundation apprenticeships, which college do fantastically. We’ve delivered them for a number of years. We’ve got graduate apprenticeships as well as your modern apprenticeships. You’ve got a number of different avenues that anybody can take now. And it is trying to engage with those employers out there. So what is the labor market looking like just now? What are the different opportunities? What are the future trends? So supporting individuals to have all that information so that they can make a well-informed decision I suppose is kind of where we go within our career guidance aspect.”

Importantly, these pathways are not only for young people. The college has always supported people changing careers or people returning to education later in life. Flexible courses, access programs and community learning opportunities allow people to gain new qualifications, rebuild confidence or simply try something new. Education by its very nature is aspirational.

The college continues to grow and develop this alongside its partners here at the Crichton campus. This ensures that there are clearly defined routes to students coming to university from school and college. These pathways help to ensure that where someone starts does not define where they can go.

Vicky Napier works in our hair and beauty department and has supported many students in their experience of college for the first time.

“We get a lot of our college academy students coming in and it’s actually so nice to see the progression especially when they’ve came straight from school and the first few weeks they’re trying to figure you out and they’re thinking there’s that kind of authority level like there is in a school and it’s not like that here. You know, we talk to them like sort of, it sounds cliche like on their level or whatever and we have a laugh and we have a kind of carry on and then as the weeks go on, you see them starting to, oh, this isn’t quite the same as school and then they’re like, oh my God, we love it here. We can’t wait to come back. We’re gonna apply for full-time course next year and we’re like, oh, that’s great. And then you watch them go up and through their journey and then they’re maturing like in themselves and as who they want to be and that’s quite nice.”