Aim Higher – Worldskills Live UK
Thursday 15th November- Worldskills Live UK at the NEC
If you ask a large group of Year 9 and 10 students what they want to do when they grow up, the vast majority will look at you as though you have asked them to go skydiving without a parachute. Knowing what you want to do as a career can instil panic into many students, but we can help by showing our students the wide range of opportunities available to them and ensuring that they have all the information they need, to make good post 16 and post 18 decisions.
On the 15th November, this is exactly what we did. 45 Year 9 and 10 students were given worksheets asking “What do you want to do with your life?”, “What options are there?” and “How can I research different careers?”. Of course, this was initially met with a lot of confused and panicked faces and a chorus of “I don’t know!”.
With the help of the ‘Careers Cloud’, an online resource where students can learn about which jobs might suit their interests and gain an insight into the educational pathways that could lead them to their desired careers, students began to start thinking about the world of work and where they would like to be in 10 years’ time.
For some students, this path is obvious and they were certain of their career path. For the vast majority, students had little idea of what they would like to do. Students then visited the Worldskills UK Live show at the NEC. This is the UK’s largest skills, apprenticeship and careers event, where careers advice, local and national companies, training organisations and colleges all meet to help students and young people learn about different industries and educational pathways. The day was fun, interactive and busy! Hundreds of companies and employers were present and students had the opportunity to do a variety of activities, from making metal aeroplanes, designing fine jewellery and learning how to perform CPR, to exploring an ambulance, jumping in racing cars and experiencing virtual reality. Students particularly enjoyed getting their faces painted and watching UK National competitions in health and beauty, cooking, construction, engineering, forensic science and many more!
After the event, we asked students the same questions we had asked previously regarding what they wanted to do after school and in the future. The feedback we received was amazing.
As a result of the day, 95% said they had learnt more about the different careers and options available and 85% said that they have a better understanding of what they want to do after school and/or as a career.
100% of our students said they would recommend this event to another student because “it can help you learn about many different options and opportunities in chosen careers”, “you can speak to people in the field you want to work in” and learn “what your chosen career really involves”. They also stated that the day would “help other students in a fun and interactive way”.
In addition to learning about career options, there were also some fun, practical activities that students got involved in, what did students learn?
“I learnt more about 3D printers!”
“I have learnt how to find clues on a crime scene (and what my future job is!)”
“Don’t be put off by the price of University”
“Try your best at all times, be confident when trying new things”
“I learnt that you need to go to university for 3 years to become a midwife”
“I learnt in more detail about the RAF and Marines”
“How to apply and blend in eyeshadow!”
“I learnt how to make pancakes!”
“I learnt to always ask lots of questions when approaching employers”
“There needs to be more female firefighters”
“What skills you need to be an architect”
“What the car of the future will look like”
“What qualifications you need to become a paramedic”
“The main GCSEs for an RAF engineer in maths and product design”
“It (the trip) showed me there is a job for everyone, whether you like painting or playing games”
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