Allen David Flett
- Region: Thompson-Okanagan Region
- Position: Mechanical Engineering
- Description:
Before going back to school I was a fourth year motorcycle apprentice. Although I enjoyed my work and found it very rewarding I found the instability of the career unfilfilling. Unfortunately the work as a Motorcycle technician slows to a crawl in the winter months and sometimes it is necessary to lay off mechanics that are lower down on the seniority chart. After scratching through another slow power sports season as a cars salesman and then a commercial construction laborer I felt as though there was a better career choice for me.
While working at Kane's Harley Davidson of Kelowna I upgraded my Math 30, Chemistry 30, English 30, and Physics 30 in three months, all of which online through two separate online high schools (you are only allowed to enroll in two courses per school because they expect two distance courses to be the maximum anyone can handle at one time). My now current, upgraded marks allowed me to qualify and enroll in the Okanagan College's Mechanical Engineering Technology program.
I was very nervous about the prospect of returning to school after 9 years of working, but luckily the support from my family, my girlfriend and my community allowed me to focus solely on learning and becoming as technically sound and proficient in my industry as possible. I am proud to say I graduated in the top quarter of my class and earning a first class designation in for one of my semesters.
I am currently on an 8 month Co-op with Michels Canada, a multinational commercial construction company. I was hired as a field engineer to work with their tunneling division.
My current string of successes has boosted my confidence and once I complete my final year at Okanagan College I intend to continue moving forward and become a Professional Engineer. I hope to one day be in a position where I can give another Métis like myself an opportunity to go beyond their own expectations and challenge themselves with a new career.