Stars of a new advertising campaign for Great Yarmouth College are apprentices and former students who have got to where they went to be in life by choosing a course at the college.

Students were also involved in the creation and production of the high-profile campaign with photos – to be featured on bus backs across the Yarmouth and Lowestoft areas for the next year – taken by media student Abbie Bunnewell as real work experience before she leaves for university.

The campaign, entitled Get Ready for Work, focuses on Yarmouth's speciality as a vocational college. It features four young people who have found their niches because of the courses they chose.

Former childcare student Chloe Ellis, 19, is a play assistant and nursery nurse on the children's ward at the James Paget University Hospital.

She is pictured in the campaign with one of the computer-programmed 'virutal babies' that cry and act like real babies.

While still at college the former Cliff Park High School student was offered jobs by her work placements and started work at the hospital straight from her course.

Felipe Dominguez, an apprentice engineer at Coday in Yarmouth. moved from Brazil 10 years ago, and completed level one and level 2 courses at the college before Coday contacted engineering tutors seeking an apprentice. Tutor David Korzyrko recommended Felipe and he started work straight away.

Beth Smith chose a BTEC in art, design and photography level 3 course after Year 11 because she wanted to concentrate on a career in art but didn't like exams.

'I didn't want to do A-levels because I didn't want exams. I used to get stressed about them,' she said.

'I wanted to focus on art and photography and knew I could still go to university by doing a BTEC level 3 and the course was perfect for me.'

She went on to get a foundation degree in fashion and textiles at UCS Great Yarmouth where she is a Suffolk Access Champion mentoring Year 10s in an Ipswich high school to aim for university. Her mentoring project – plus a national scholarship grant – means she has enjoyed an £11,000 fee waiver towards her higher education fees.

'It's worked out brilliantly for me. I didn't want to move away to do a degree because I have a really good part-time job and a life here. The course is really good here; I like the tutors and, because it is small, we get practically one-to-one tuition.'

Meanwhile Jez Mackleworth, 20, is an apprentice chef at Great Yarmouth College – one of more than 20 apprentices working with teams across the college.

He progressed to an apprenticeship from a full-time catering course during which he was chosen to cook for and serve the table of the Queen during her Diamond Jubilee Garden Party at Sandringham last June.

The college students also acted as consultants through the development of the campaign.

The campaign will be on the back of three buses in the Yarmouth, Martham and Caister areas as well as north Lowestoft, on bus sides and onboard.