Moving from music buddy exhibit to employee

Taking part in an exhibition of work proved a wise move for Teesside University student Adam Gatenby.

It led to his first job, starting straight after he’d finished his BA (Hons) Digital Music Creation.

The good news didn’t end there for Adam, as he also achieved a first class degree.

Adam, 22, from Ormesby, Middlesbrough, has been working as a programmer for Ideonic, an educational computer games company, since completing his studies in May. Ideonic are based on the University’s campus in the Phoenix Building off Woodlands Road.

The company was first set up by Teesside computer games programming graduate Jeremiah Alexander three years ago in one of our graduate incubator units. The company was then known as Babel Digital, rebranded as Ideonic last year and moved into the Phoenix Building as an independent company. The Phoenix’s third floor is devoted solely to new digital media talent.

Jeremiah first met Adam in March, at the University’s annual ExpoTees exhibition. ExpoTees gives final-year students from the School of Computing the opportunity to display their projects and meet potential employers, students and other interested guests.

Adam’s project was ‘Music Buddy’, an interactive website to teach music to primary children aged seven to 11, tying in with the national curriculum for music.

Adam’s project evolved from his previous part-time job at Hemlington Hall Primary School in Middlesbrough. He said: 'I tested the Music Buddy out with the children; they were really happy with it and also made suggestions for improvements. The teachers could especially see the benefits as a learning resource. Jeremiah toured ExpoTees, spoke to me and then a few times afterwards and offered me the post.'

'It’s a really good, exciting job. I’ve been involved in several projects so far and have also taken part in several workshops with secondary schools and sixth forms. It’s a fantastic opportunity for me, and I find it a rewarding environment to be in.'

Jeremiah said: 'The Music Buddy was the total package, very complete, very well thought out and what I was looking for practically and creatively. I saw a lot of potential in what he was doing in relation to our business. Speaking to Adam I got an understanding of his ideas and skills and also of his character and motivation. He’s proving an asset to the company.'

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