S Jobbins, Careers and Employability Advisor; April 2019

This term I have completed the Careers Leader training modules which have given me a much clearer idea of how the Gatsby Guidelines for Careers Work in schools can be further addressed here. One particular study ‘Personal Guidance, What works best’ raised some useful considerations, highlighting that students may benefit from a small group careers discussion if considering the same career area or educational route, after a school trip for instance. It is certainly something to consider in addition to the current personal guidance appointments made available on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Since starting the training, I have made the careers office resources available in the school library  and created a sixth form notice board to keep students up to date on careers news and events.

The Kent UCAS Higher Education Exhibition went well  with many university representatives in attendance including the new Kent and Medway School of Medicine.  Two of the talks on offer were ‘Personal Statements’ by Canterbury Christchurch and ‘Choosing a University and Course’ by Roehampton University. All of the students that fed back commented on how it was a good research tool for university. In some cases it lead to students reconsidering the universities they had originally thought about going to or their career plans. In line with this, Mr O’Neill held his annual Oxbridge Evening, which provided an excellent opportunity for those considering Oxford or Cambridge to hear from graduate speakers.

The careers team is now beginning to plan June’s Post-18 Events which will include employer lead Mock Interviews, Alumni Careers Talks, and more in house advice on university applications and personal statements. We will be holding our Careers Network Evening on Thursday 27^th June and would love to hear from any alumni or parents who would like to be involved. Please email sjobbins@rmgs.org.uk