Year 11
CAREERS AND HIGHER EDUCATION GUIDANCE
Student CEIAG in Year 11 focusses on GCSE choices, how to enter a specific career, alternative sixth forms & further education and also school leaver programmes. To help students in this transitional period they are able to self-refer to meet with our independent and impartial careers advisor or our higher education advisor by emailing Mrs Ahmad who is Careers Leader within school.
SUPPORT FOR PARENTS AND CARERS
To help guide parents through this transition stage we have purchased The Parents' Guide to Post 16 Options which has lots of valuable information that you may find useful, and we also run a number of career information related webinars for parents throughout the year.
AUTUMN TERM
Students complete a ‘Looking Ahead’ form which encourages them to think about their future education and career plans. Students are then invited to attend a one-to-one careers consultation with our independent and impartial careers advisor who provides information, advice and guidance. Students have the opportunity to explore their future career and further education options and discuss how to make informed choices about their A Levels. Priority is given to those who are looking to study elsewhere or who wish to study subjects that we do not offer in the Sixth Form. In addition, students learn about alternative pathways to both A Levels and university, including apprenticeship and school leaver programmes. Further information on post-16 options can be found on various sites including ck careers online, Pearson, UCAS and icould.
Students have the opportunity to attend industry related workshops run by our independent professional careers advisor. This gives students the opportunity to find out, within a group setting, about career opportunities within the related industry. They also explore the range of entry routes and progression opportunities relevant to the career area, look at labour market information, gender issues etc.
All students attend a workshop with our HE advisor and are introduced to UCAS, learn how to find out information about universities, courses and course entry requirements. Students are also equipped with the tools needed to gather information on various career & HE opportunities. In November, we host our ‘Opportunities in the Sixth Form’ evening. This provides students with the chance to learn more about the courses we offer in sixth form as well as the support and advice we provide for Higher Education and Careers.
SPRING TERM
After the mock exams, all Year 11 students meet with a member of the Senior Leadership Team and their parents to discuss their option choices in January. This gives students an opportunity to have guidance meetings to reflect on their A level choices and discuss how it fits into their longer term career plans. Students who need further guidance at this stage will be referred to our independent professional careers advisor. In January students also take part in ‘A Day in the Life of a Sixth Former’ and attend 5 A Level lessons of their choice. This gives students a true sense of what it is like to be a student in our Sixth Form. Further information and advice on choosing A-levels can be found on various websites including: Russell Group, Which? University and Brightknowledge. You may also find the Russell Group's interactive guide to making decisions about post-16 education Informed Choices of interest. Various websites including: Getingofar, GOV.UK and The Apprenticeship Guide, plus the UCAS website all offer advice and guidance on Higher and Degree Apprencticeships. Sutton’s Apprenticeship Hub is also available to help people aged 16+ that have left, or are due to leave secondary education.
Students have a second opportunity to sit the Morrisby Online Careers Assessment. Benefits of the online assessment may include increased self-awareness by providing objective analysis of aptitudes, interests, motivations and preferences and may also provide students with focus, direction and motivation in their studies and help students to select the most relevant Further and Higher Education subjects. Morrisby Online supports students with lifetime access to their own personal interactive career and educational planning website. Students receive feedback in the form of an on-line report which includes students aptitudes, career Interests, preferred working environment, employment style & suitability and also Higher Education course information. Further information can be found on the Morrisby website.
SUMMER TERM
Students have the opportunity to take part in The NCS programme run by the National Citizenship Service. The programme which aims to give students the opportunity to build skills for work and life, gives students the chance to work with industry, to learn new skills, meet new people and help them discover their talents and realise their potential. Further details can be found on The NCS website.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
As part of their preparation for the Sixth Form, students are provided with information about university courses, course requirements and some of the factors which a university will be looking for in applications. Through the tutorial programme, Year 11 students will hear from Year 13 students who have successfully secured offers in a range of subjects in order to aid them in their preparation. They also have a talk from a staff member who recently completed a sabbatical at Cambridge University about wider reading and other academic activities that will help strengthen their application.
Year 11 students also have the opportunity to participate in a range of after-school workshops which are aimed at developing intellectual curiosity. This year, workshops included; Scepticism; Do we really mean what we say? What is Art? Students considering a career in Medicine also have the opportunity to attend a medic’s talk by a current university medical student.
Students are reminded how to access the schools careers library and careers website on Frog. Both provide access to impartial and independent information about a wide range of careers, education and training options and students are encouraged to carry out further independent research and exploration.
To see what your child's typical CEIAG journey may look like whilst at Nonsuch please see our CEIAG Programme