Two teenagers from The Highcrest Academy won lavish praise during a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ work placement trip to America attended by students from all around the world.

Ellie Millward-Roberts and Linchy Pakeerathan, both 17, returned to the High Wycombe school earlier this month after impressing a large audience in the USA with their presentation skills.

The sixth formers were part of a group of students from across the globe to take part in the 2019 Alliance Building and Training Session in New Brunswick - an annual event organised by healthcare company Johnson & Johnson (J&J), which has headquarters in High Wycombe.

The pair secured their places through the Bridge to Employment (BTE) programme which was set up by J&J in 1992 to inspire young people to enrol in higher education, excel academically and pursue health and science careers.

Darshini Sharma, J&J’s BTE Lead for High Wycombe, who accompanied Ellie and Linchy on the trip, said: “Both girls wholeheartedly embraced every challenge presented to them and we are delighted to have been able to give them this opportunity. They made a positive impact on everyone they interacted with, and we are so proud of how they have grown professionally and personally.”

As part of the sessions, Ellie and Linchy worked in teams with students from other countries to re-imagine heritage J&J products; interviewing industry professionals from the company to learn about different aspects of product development and to hone their professional skills. They then had to present their product to an audience of more than 150 people, including senior executives from J&J.

Highcrest Careers Leader Rob Evans, who was also present on the trip, said: “This would have even been tough for graduate employees of the business, yet these students rose to the challenge admirably and were really impressive. We were so proud of them.”

The countries represented included Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Sweden and various American states and cities.

The High Wycombe students were supported by several UK-based professionals from J&J who have worked with them as part of the BTE programme which has now been running at Highcrest for four years. Highcrest is the first school in the UK to participate in the programme.

The pair left the UK on October 1 and before heading back to the UK on October 6, there was just enough time for a flying visit to New York City where the Highcrest students went on a river cruise along the New York coastline, visited the 9/11 Memorial, had a sightseeing tour of Manhattan and ate at Ellen’s Stardust Diner where Broadway singers entertain diners with songs from musicals.

Ellie said: “The trip to America was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I am very appreciative of everything that went into it as it was very memorable. We experienced and learned so much by attending the conference.”

Linchy added: “This five-day trip was a dream come true in all honesty. It allowed me to make new friends from a variety of different cultures and learn to present confidently in front of a large crowd. It was an opportunity I’m forever grateful for taking.”