A nature lover who decided he wanted to ‘make a difference’ has landed a job helping to shape the future of a county’s wildlife thanks to his university studies.
Liam Blazey, 36, decided to change his career after realising the jobs he was interested in doing asked for skills he didn’t yet have.
Now, after four years’ study at Wrexham Glyndwr University’s Northop campus studying Wildlife and Plant Biology, he has secured a role with Denbighshire County Council as a biodiversity officer – and is responsible for protecting and developing a wide range of species right across the county’s vast number of habitats.
He said: “Maybe because I’m slightly older than some students, and I’ve had jobs I haven’t enjoyed, a few years back I knew I wanted to make a change – I wanted to have a job where I felt like I was making a difference.
“Before I started at university, I knew I really wanted to work in the environment. I’d read job adverts and I didn’t have the skills I needed for the kinds of jobs I wanted – so I decided to start to build my CV. If I think back six years ago to now, I am a completely different person. Coming to university was the best thing I ever did – particularly Glyndwr and the Northop campus. You can’t find a campus like this anywhere else!”
While studying, Liam took a range of volunteering opportunities across North Wales which the university helped to put students in touch with – working on surveys for a range of organisations and clients. During that time, he helped to monitor and build up information about North Wales’ wildlife – experience which stood him good stead when it came to securing his current role with the council.
He added: “I had very supportive lecturers who knew a lot about their subjects and were keen to help, and I volunteered alongside knowledgeable conservationists and staff who were also very supportive. Put those two together and it really made a massive difference. I got the job just after I graduated from Glyndwr, last November. It is hard work – but I am very happy, it’s definitely been worth it.