IT says much about Corrie Scott’s attitude that she describes her daily 5am starts as “not too bad”. Having been an international swimmer for nearly a decade, the 23-year-old is well accustomed to early mornings but being on a work placement at a pharmaceutical company for the past few months has meant that her schedule has become particularly severe.

However, so positive is the breaststroker that she even goes so far as to say that she likes being in the pool before most of the country has even opened its eyes.

“It can be tough at times because when I get to the pool it’s cold and dark and I’m the only person there but actually, I really don’t mind it at all,” she says.

“I know what my goals are and what I’m working towards so while I do have a tough schedule, I like it.”

Scott may still be in her early twenties yet she is a stalwart of the Scottish swimming team.

Her first major championship appearance was way back in 2010 when she was competed in the Commonwealth Games in Delhi just a few weeks after her 17th birthday but her greatest achievement to date came three years ago when she took bronze in the 50m breaststroke at Glasgow 2014.

However, not all has gone quite to plan since that medal-winning performance at her home Commonwealth Games. Scott missed out on Olympic selection last year and she admits that led to much soul searching.

“Last year was a massive disappointment for me and it was a big decision point,” she says. “Mentally I wasn’t in a good place but I knew that I was still learning and that I still could improve so while I had my moments, I knew that I didn’t want to quit.

“The Olympic trials didn’t go to plan so I just have to make sure that I learn from that and never allow that to happen again. It was hard to bounce back but I took a step back, had a good break and really renewed my love for the sport.”

There can be little doubting Scott’s drive this year in particular.

She is in her fourth year of a chemistry degree at Edinburgh University which involves her going on a work placement and having taken a year out of university in 2016 in order to focus on her sport, having to work full-time in addition to training twice a day has come as something of a shock to the system.

Scott admits to having had some worries about her ability to cope with such a demanding schedule but rather than it being detrimental to her swimming, the variety has actually helped her.

“Ever since I was 13 years old, I’ve done nine or 10 sessions a week and so it got to the point that maybe a change was what I needed,” she says.

“Being on placement this year has forced that change which has been good because it’s hard to reduce your volume of training without feeling really guilty but this year, I’ve had no choice.

“Last year when I was swimming full-time I put a lot of pressure on myself so starting work has helped me a lot mentally because it’s taken my mind off of swimming and so now I’m excited to go training.

“Physically, I know I’m fit so improving mentally and tactically are what’s going to make the real difference at this point in my career.”

Scott certainly is doing something right. At the end of last year, the University of Edinburgh swimmer broke the Scottish 100m breaststroke shortcourse record which, she admits, has given her a significant confidence boost going into this year.

And the Scottish No 1 will have another chance to make her presence felt next weekend when she competes in the Edinburgh International Meet which takes place on Scott’s home turf, the Royal Commonwealth Pool.

However, the Commonwealth medallist’s attention has already turned to upgrading her bronze that she won at Glasgow 2014.

The next Commonwealth Games are now just 13 months away and with Scott missing out on gold by a mere 0.16 seconds, she knows that improving on her result three years ago is an eminently realistic aim.

“I feel like time has flown by since Glasgow – we can start qualifying for the 2018 Commonwealths next month which is crazy,” she says. “I’m definitely thinking about Gold Coast already and I’m someone who always wants more.

“I’m happy with my race if I know I’ve done my best but I’m never quite satisfied so in Glasgow, bronze was a great achievement but I was so close to gold so that’s put a bit of fire in my belly for next year.

“There’s some brilliant swimmers in the Commonwealth at the moment and they’re swimming really fast so it’s going to be a tough task but I’m going to give it everything I can.”