After months of preparation, The Bourne End Academy and Bucks Skills Hub welcomed employers, higher education providers and students to introduce years 7,8 and 9 to the world of work.
Aims of the day included helping students to develop their future career goals, be engaged and motivated in their learning by providing future context, and reach their full potential by raising their aspirations to be the very best they can be.
Aims of the day included helping students to develop their future career goals, be engaged and motivated in their learning by providing future context, and reach their full potential by raising their aspirations to be the very best they can be.
Each year group had a different focus:
Year 7 Meet the Employers: Each class had the opportunity to hear from at least two employers from very different industry sectors about their career journeys – why they chose their particular profession, what subjects they studied, what their day-to-day job is like and how students can follow in their footsteps.
Year 8 STEM Career Showcase: Each class heard from two professionals from the exciting world of science, technology, engineering and maths. Speakers challenged stereotypes about just who can follow a career in STEM and revealed opportunities within this growing industry sector.
Year 9 Higher Education carousel: Buckinghamshire New University carried out two one-hour workshops with students highlighting the benefits of HE, and giving information for the students to decide whether it could be the right path for them. A fun, interactive labour market information presentation was included as part of the session, getting students to think about the jobs of tomorrow as well as the local workforce.
Speakers included Mechanical, Chemical and Civil Engineers from Stantec in High Wycombe; Cloud Architects from CAPSiDE; Recruitment and HR employees from Dun and Bradstreet in Marlow; a previous Microsoft employee and CEO of Softools in Henley. Speakers kept their information interactive and engaging whilst encouraging students to question them to learn more about anything they wanted to know.
"We really could not be making such an impact without all the hard work our Enterprise Coordinators and Enterprise Advisors have put in. In two hours yesterday we provided a careers experience for 360 students at Bourne End Academy that would have really given them something to aspire to. As I was walking around I was so impressed with the variety of activities and experiences that were happening in the classroom. The whole afternoon ran so smoothly and I have heard nothing but good feedback from every teacher and student that I have spoken to. I would really be at sea without all the support they offer and BEA is very lucky to have such brilliant careers support.” - William Meadows, Careers Coordinator, Bourne End Academy.