Farnborough College of Technology

Farnborough College of Technology

Farnborough College of Technology main blocks
Type Public
Established 1957[1]
Academic affiliation
 Aldershot College
University of Surrey
Principal Virginia Barrett
Students

c. 8000

[2]
Location Farnborough, Hampshire
51°17′08″N 0°44′56″W / 51.2856°N 0.7490°W / 51.2856; -0.7490Coordinates: 51°17′08″N 0°44′56″W / 51.2856°N 0.7490°W / 51.2856; -0.7490
Campus Urban
Colours Orange      and Navy     
Website http://www.farn-ct.ac.uk/

Farnborough College of Technology is a college located in the town of Farnborough, Hampshire in the South East of England. Although primarily a further education college, Farnborough College of Technology also offers a range of higher education courses, accredited by the University of Surrey.[3] The college is often referred to as 'Farnborough Tech' to differentiate it from The Sixth Form College Farnborough.

History

The roots of the college date back to 1913 when the War Office authorised classes to be held at the Royal Aircraft Factory, based at Farnborough Airfield. In 1944 this became an independent technical school. In 1957, a separate college known as Farnborough Tech was established on an adjacent area of land. In 1960, the RAE Technical School merged with Farnborough Tech to form Farnborough College of Technology.[1]

In 1967, engineering students from the college staged an elaborate hoax by placing six model flying saucers across southern England as a rag week stunt. The emergency and military services took them seriously for some hours. The hoax was only made public by The National Archives in 2011.[4][5]

Farnborough College of Technology's Aerospace and Automotive Academy

Facilities

The main campus at Boundary Road, Farnborough provides vocational training and education. Specialist training facilities include Concept hair and beauty salon,[6] The Gallery Restaurant,[7] Body and Soul gym, a 300-seat Theatre, a multi-camera television studio[2] and two radio studios. The lattermost are used for 26 days in March each year to broadcast Echo 87.7, the college's commercial radio station which operates under an Restricted Service Licence. A second campus, Aldershot College on Holder Road in Aldershot, opened in September 2005. It also provides vocational training, including trade skills such as carpentry and plumbing.[8]

Structure

The academic activities of the college are divided into the following six schools:[9]

Notable alumni

Former students of the college include musician Mike Rutherford of the bands Genesis and Mike + The Mechanics, as well as Diane Youdale and Mark Griffin who appeared in the British television series Gladiators as Jet and Trojan respectively.[2] DJ Annie Mac earned a Master's Degree in Radio at FCOT, before going on to have her own show on BBC Radio 1.[10] In an interview, she referred to her year in Farnborough as "the biggest culture-shock [she'd] ever experienced in [her] life".[11] Musician and author Alan Clayson studied at FCOT from 1968 to 1970.

Three members of The Football Ramble, the largest independent podcast in the UK studied at the college. Luke Moore, Marcus Speller and Jim Campbell all met at FCOT and studied there between 2000 and 2003. Moore and Speller both featured on the college radio station, co-hosting the Saturday Sports Show.

References

  1. 1 2 "Celebrating 50 Years in Education". Farnborough College of Technology. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 "Farnborough College of Technology". London: The Independent. 19 June 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  3. ↑ "Higher Education Undergraduate Degrees Entry 2010" (PDF). Farnborough College of Technology. 2009. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009. The College has a very close relationship with the University of Surrey, which accredits our Degree programmes.
  4. ↑ UFO files: threat of alien invasion taken seriously by military, Daily Telegraph, 3 March 2011
  5. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12631966 UFO files released by government, BBC News, 3 March 2011 (video)
  6. ↑ "Concept salon". Farnborough College of Technology. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  7. ↑ "Aldershot campus". Farnborough College of Technology. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  8. ↑ "Farnborough campus". Farnborough College of Technology. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  9. ↑ "Annie Mac: Young, gifted and credible". London: The Independent. 22 December 2008. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  10. ↑ "Radio 1's Annie finally gets her place in the sun". London: The Independent. 7 April 2008. Retrieved 30 September 2009.

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