AoC Sport helps college students break down barriers with life-changing trips to America

One hundred sport and physical activity students from colleges from Sunderland to Wolverhampton are jetting off on transformative international experiences. They will be visiting Miami and Boston to enhance their skills and boost their employability, as part of the government-funded Turing Scheme.

Those from the North-East on placement at Miami Dade College will take part in valuable sessions on nutrition and wellness, learn about deconstructing self-doubt and imposter syndrome, as well as watching the Miami Heat basketball team and visit the subtropical wilderness of the Florida Everglades on their trip from 7-21 March.

Students from the Midlands will be based in New England from 14-28 March, and will tour the world-famous Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. They will also hear from sport psychology experts at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and get involved in peer exchanges at a number of community colleges around the city, to compare how sport is organised and delivered at different levels of the US educational system.

Turing Scheme student Sebastian from Redcar College said: “I never expected to get a chance like this. I have never been abroad or even on a plane before so for me, and all of us, this really will be an incredible experience.”

Rachel Walker, Policy and Projects Manager at AoC Sport said: “The Turing Scheme illustrates the vital role colleges play in shaping young peoples’ futures and how they break down the barriers to opportunity that hamstring the government’s missions on social mobility and economic growth.

“This programme does not just open doors, it builds bridges, offering students’ the chance to gain the skills and experiences that employers demand.

“I would like to thank the National Junior College Athletic Association in Boston and Miami Dade College for broadening our students’ horizons and providing invaluable cultural experiences.”

The Turing Scheme, named after pioneering British mathematician Alan Turing, has a particular focus on students from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups and provides them with the opportunity to enhance their academic and personal growth through international study and work placements, equipping them with the skills and confidence to thrive in a global world.