Not so long ago she had aspirations to be a doctor, but thanks to a new programme Breanna West is launching a career in business she never foresaw.

Ms West, 19, was celebrated yesterday as the first student to earn an associates in general insurance through the Career Pathways initiative.

She was one of the students involved in the programme’s first cadre, enrolling while she was a student at the Berkeley Institute.

“At the beginning of my high school career, I never would have believed that I would wind up here,” she said.

“I wanted to become a paediatrician or a doctor. I did not think of insurance or any of those careers, but now this programme has helped me to cement my place in this business world.” Asked what inspired her to enrol, she said: “At first I wanted to enrol because I had an interest in business. Accounting was always my best subject.”

She credited Dawnnelle Walker, CEO of the Bermuda Insurance Institute, with changing her mind.

“She introduced me and the other students to a whole new world,” she said.

Dr Walker said it was a pleasure to highlight and publicly acknowledge the success and hard work of Ms West.

“She has been diligent, she has been dedicated and she has seen the benefits of her hard work in obtaining the associates in general insurance,” she said. “In my time with the BII, she is the first high school student to begin the programme. She is now at Bermuda College and has completed the programme, but she began while at the Berkeley Institute.”

The Career Pathways programme, organised by the Bermuda Insurance Institute and the Ministry of Education, introduces students to the business world through hands-on experience. Wayne Scott, the Minister of Education, said the programme, launched in early 2014, has proven a “shining success” in the island’s high schools, offering students to develop academic, technical and workplace skills.

“The goals of the programme are to provide learning opportunities through real-world work experience, to provide students with advance college preparatory courses and to foster the development of professionalism, accountability, interpersonal communication and networking skills,” he said.

He thanked the insurance partners working with the programme, who also underwrote the cost of exams with no cost to parents or the government.

Mr Scott wished her success as she continued on her path to become an underwriter.