A talented patissière from City of Glasgow College is on her way to the Olympics of further education in Brazil next month.

Mikaela Wright is preparing for the Worldskills 2015 finals in Sao Paulo by learning from experts at The Balmoral, a renowned hotel in Edinburgh.

She hopes her stint working alongside some of the world’s finest creators of patisserie, chocolate, and desserts will improve her prospects of a strong performance as part of Team UK at the finals of Worldskills, a global competition testing talented students within further education.

Mikaela, who gained an HND in Professional Cookery before completing a specialist Patisserie course in the last year, said: “It’s great to fly the flag for City of Glasgow College at Worldskills.

“I expected to come to college and then get a job – I never anticipated the opportunity to be involved in a competition like this. I was surprised to be selected for Team UK, and I know there’s a lot of hard work ahead of me."

Mikaela was successful in regional heats against fellow patisserie students in the west of Scotland and progressed to victory in national and Europe-wide competitions.

Her selection for Team UK is the result of close attention to detail and imaginative creations that led to a series of successes for the 20-year-old, who plans to encourage the next generation of world-class City of Glasgow College hospitality students before setting up her own business.

She added: “I would like to help the next generation of Worldskills competitors at City of Glasgow College, mentoring younger students.

“I would like to travel and meet Christophe Morel, the chocolatier from Canada, as well as visit other countries.

“Eventually, I would like to have my own patisserie, but, in the meantime, I want to train with professionals and carry on learning.”

Margaret Darroch, Head of Skills Academy and Development at City of Glasgow College, praised Mikaela for setting a positive example.

She said: “Mikaela has great natural talent and has worked hard to build on that during her time at City of Glasgow College. Her balance of training needed to be tweaked to give her the best chance of success at the Worldskills finals in Sao Paulo, so the placement at The Balmoral in Edinburgh will prove very beneficial.

“This is Mikaela’s chance to compete at a new level, on an international platform. Worldskills is so competitive and is a test not only of Mikaela’s vocational skills but her mindset and attitude.”

The 43rd Worldskills finals will take place at Anhembi Parque, Sao Paulo, Brazil from August 11 to 16.