CAREERS NEWSLETTER 2017-18
ISSUE 16 – Friday 8 June 2018 During the half term break, we received excellent news about another Upper Sixth student who has landed a prestigious higher apprenticeship. Many congratulations to Remy, who will be one of Deloitte’s new BrightStart apprentices! Read more about her outstanding achievement below. (Photo credit: Mollie O’Sullivan.)
A BRIGHT START FOR REMY AT LEADING ADVISORY & CONSULTING FIRM DELOITTE Currently on study leave to help prepare for her A level examinations, Remy discovered at end of May she had been accepted for Deloitte’s highly competitive BrightStart higher apprenticeship. As one of only three students selected at her final interview in London from an original field of 1760 impressive young people, she most definitely deserves many congratulations on her outstanding achievement. Remy very kindly took a break from revision to answer a few questions from Bablake’s Careers Department: What did the Deloitte BrightStart application procedure entail? “The application process was extremely challenging. You had to be successful at every stage to progress to the next one, and please keep in mind I first applied in November last year, over six months ago! Initially you were required to submit a generic CV and covering letter, then, if successful, you were forwarded to an online immersive assessment and after that, an online job simulation. A group exercise with other candidates was then followed by a one-toone interview with a senior partner from Deloitte. As you can imagine, the whole process was very stressful, very time-consuming, but 100% worth it!” What were the actual interviews like? “The interviews themselves were like nothing I had experienced before! I have been working part-time in retail since the age of 16, so it is safe to say I have had my fair share of 'job interviews', but none were like this one. When you are in the Sixth Form, studying full time in education, you really do not have a clue what to expect when it comes to these kind of processes. However, after doing my research and sitting down and rehearsing answers with my mum after dinner, I felt I had done all I could do to prepare myself for the unknown. The group assessment was really enjoyable, as it was based on a 'real life' scenario where you had to work with your team and produce the best outcome, which gave me a chance to showcase my problem-solving and teamwork skills. My one-to-one interview, which I was most nervous about, went well, but I had to give a 5 minute presentation answering the question: 'Why do most start-ups fail and what can Deloitte do to solve this?' This was followed by some questions about myself; here my interviewer made me feel really comfortable and surprisingly we had a really good chat about our mutual love of travel.” What were your fellow ‘BrightStarts’ like and what do you think made them and you stand out? “My fellow ‘BrightStarts’ were amazing - a really great, genuine group of people whom I can see myself working well with. Because of the many departments in Deloitte, it was fantastic to meet people with passions for different areas of the business. I will be working on strategy and operations, perhaps one of the more marginal sections of the BrightStart scheme, but accountancy has over 35 BrightStarts in the Stonecutter Court office alone! What I think made the others and myself stand out was our hunger for experience. I knew that I had outgrown sitting in a classroom writing and memorising facts or theories which I could not immediately put into practice. As a kinaesthetic learner, I like to be hands on in what I do. Deloitte seems such a fantastic company, as it caters for everyone and no matter where your passion lies, there is a role to suit everyone.” What tips would you give anyone applying next year? “My advice would include being very time conscious. I feel keeping up with deadlines in the application process will reveal to the company that you are effective with your time management and this is something they really look out for. My second tip would be just be yourself, there is no point in pretending to be a person that you are not just to fit in with the job role; Deloitte really values individuality and innovation, the more unique you are the better! Lastly, I think confidence is key, nerves effect the best of us (me included); you just need to remember that no one wants to see you fail, the person interviewing you is a normal person! Similar to you this morning they woke up, brushed their teeth, had breakfast and came to work; they are not some monster out to get you! Clarity and calmness are crucial when involved in the interview process.” Where do you see BrightStart leading to? “From BrightStart, I hope to gain the skills and expertise that will help kick start my career in the corporate world in the best way possible. I hope to use my innovation and other skills to add benefit to the business when working with my team on projects. I am so excited to see what the next 4 years hold!” We once again congratulate Remy on her fantastic tenacity and endeavour throughout the application procedure, and proudly look forward to hearing more about her progress with Deloitte. For more information on the BrightStart scheme, please see https://bit.ly/2G7STzP.
@BablakeCareers
A REPORT ON... 2018’s LOWER SIXTH ‘BEYOND BABLAKE’ DAY For those looking to emulate the success of our Upper Sixth in gaining offers from the best universities and employers for competitive courses or programmes and apprenticeships, our Lower Sixth students headed off for half term well prepared for the challenges ahead, following a busy, challenging day of talks and advice. Head of Sixth Form Mrs Tumber began the day urging students to take the initiative with their individual paths, while CV consultant Emma Goodman offered pertinent and practical advice on how to construct not only a chronological CV, but also an effective covering letter and graduate CV. James Catterall, from Gapforce, opened our students’ eyes to the exciting opportunities open to them on a gap year, and then in the afternoon, while the majority of the year group began preparing for the UCAS process, a small group of students learnt more about what employers were looking for in an excellent session led by Wagstaff Recruitment CEO Ruth Forster. At lunchtime, the latter also gave advice to a few girls who were looking for more information about opportunities in engineering. Earlier in the day, the Careers Department reminded the Lower Sixth about this term’s Mock Interview Morning – see www.2morrow-2day.com for more info – and then, after asking the year group how many of the 18 activities suggested earlier in the year they had followed or planned to complete by the end of August, it was time to offer 18 further tips for staying ahead: 1. Get involved and be curious –think and step outside your comfort zone; the classroom is very limited, whereas the world outside and jobs of the future are mostly undiscovered. 2. Manage a positive digital portfolio – a) follow useful websites, newsletters, vlogs, blogs, social platforms and forums; b) create your own positive professional digital footprint to advertise your best side(s). 3. Build a network – for many, it would be so beneficial to join LinkedIn now or the most relevant social media platforms to suit your purpose beyond Bablake; follow companies and individuals, join forums, begin to expand your knowledge beyond the classroom. 4. Identity the culture you want from life beyond Bablake: e.g. the environment you want to work and live in. Don’t be scared of choosing what you enjoy and excel at – it’s your life and dream! 5. Choose an employer or sector to investigate. 6. TOP TIP!! Build your commercial awareness – read in depth (online, brochures, extended/ related reading), network and talk to those who can benefit you. Be astute and tactical! 7. Be yourself – in fact, be your best professional, fascinating, interesting, charismatic self and your individuality is a good thing! ‘Clones’ do not impress most employers. 8. What’s your brand? What do you offer? When you walk out of a room, what would people say about you?! 9. It’s about more than (just) grades - they open doors, but without character and commercial awareness, you can falter. Employers want you! 10. Really do consider (degree) apprenticeships – they offer a (degree) qualification, a wage rather than fees, practical work experience and, for most, a guaranteed job, if you work at it. 11. Get to grips with and practise selection methods: for apprenticeships/ employment, this means online tests, interviews online (via blank screen or AI format), face-to-face interviews and assessment centre exercises. 12. Remember the digital interview is a boom area and it will only increase in any pre-selection method. 13. At interview, use the STAR*/ ABC** method when answering questions, and ensure you talk about what YOU did, not just what the team did. 14. Discover 18 things about your future employer, sector, role and/ or course? 15. Employers may well close applications before a stated deadline, so attend to this ruthlessly and apply early. 16. Employers recruit from a wide variety of universities and you can affect their decisions. 17. Be resilient, be active, cold call, chase unanswered messages; bounce back from a rejection and make it their loss, not yours. 18. Keep options open with regard to degrees or apprenticeships. Bonus Material 1. Try the Sacu Spartan test (free); enrol for Barclays Life Skills (free); surf The Student Ladder; store Bright Network for post 18 use; complete some MOOCs (via Future Learn or similar). Surf UCAS, Which?Uni, Rate My Apprenticeship, Amazing Apprenticeships et al. * S-ituation, T-ask, A-ction, R-esult/ R-eflection
@BablakeCareers
** A-ctivity, B-ehaviour, C-onsequence
IN THE NEWS… IS GENDER REALLY STILL A BARRIER? You cannot have failed to notice this week the comments of Qatar Airways’ CEO who had the audacity to suggest that leading a large organisation like his was a job only suited to a man – as shareholders break into a cold sweat, he has since made an apology of sorts, where he cast as much blame on a supposed misrepresentation of his words as towards the regret he felt about his statement. This faux pas came hot on the heels of the government-backed Hampton-Alexander review report listing the worrying ‘explanations’, from a range of FTSE 350 Chairs and CEOs, why more women were not appointed to their boards. These included: 1. ‘I don’t think women fit comfortably into the board environment.’ 2. ‘There aren’t that many women with the right credentials and depth of experience to sit on the board - the issues covered are extremely complex.’ 3. ‘Most women don’t want the hassle or pressure of sitting on a board.’ 4. ‘Shareholders just aren’t interested in the make-up of the board, so why should we be?’ 5. ‘My other board colleagues wouldn’t want to appoint a woman on our board.’ 6. ‘All the ‘good’ women have already been snapped up.’ 7. ‘We have one woman already on the board, so we are done - it is someone else’s turn.’ 8. ‘There aren’t any vacancies at the moment - if there were, I would think about appointing a woman.’ 9. ‘We need to build the pipeline from the bottom - there just aren’t enough senior women in this sector.’ 10. ‘I can’t just appoint a woman because I want to.’ Amid such man-splaining, the review has challenged these companies to ensure at least a third of their board members and leaders are women by 2020, and we await further progress reports. In the meantime, it was very refreshing to see the education world show the right way this week. Girls Day Schools Trust CEO Cheryl Giovannoni proposed the following 10 reasons for why more women should be appointed to the boardroom: 1. Women directors change the way boards work for the better, bringing different perspectives, experiences and approaches to decision-making. 2. Companies with gender-diverse boards make more money. 3. Increasing the number of women on a team enhances the collective intelligence. 4. Gender-diverse boards attract investment from investors increasingly conscious of societal issues. 5. Women are the prime financial decision-makers. 6. Women can supercharge the world economy. 7. Women are the social web’s dominant force, so strong female voices in the boardroom win friends and influence people. 8. You have to see it to be it – promote more women now to allow the next generation of leaders to be emboldened. 9. Women are more likely to be effective leaders – showing better communication skills, empowering more employees and being more creative problem-solvers. 10. Women make up 51% of the UK population – this should be reflected at board level in every field: science, politics, media et al. Not before time, we hope there will be true intersectional equal opportunity and it will then be possible to appoint the best people for the best jobs, without any accusation of tokenism. Fortunately those working in the Coventry School Foundation are working for an employer that offers more equal opportunity than most. We have a female Chair of Governors, while at Bablake three of our seven senior leaders are female, and all bar one of our six year heads are women. Our middle managers are a fairly even gender split and each has been selected as the best candidates for their position. Bablake proudly offers effective role models for our female pupils, but as news from this week shows, it would be glib to deny there are still challenges for the young 21st century worker to face inside many professions and with many employers.
@BablakeCareers
TALKING POINTS UNIVERSITY PROSPECTUSES
DISCOVER YOUR POTENTIAL
DEGREE APPRENTICESHIPS
A REMINDER
FAST TOMATO We will be asking our 4th Year pupils to complete the Fast Tomato programme on Friday 15th June during registration. This will offer useful assistance for important options chosen at 16 and prompt discussion over the summer. BUZZ TEST Before the end of term, we will be asking our 3rd Years to complete the short Buzz test, which helps identity everyone’s natural character. Further info on these programmes will come via tutor groups.
Before sending for 2019-20 university prospectuses, please check we do not have spare copies in the Careers Centre. Feel free to come and have a rummage!
CALLING FOR ASSISTANCE Thank you to the parents who have responded to our appeal for help supplementing our guidance. If you are still keen to assist, http://www.2morrow-2day.com/helpwe-need-somebody.html has more info on what we are looking for.
Aston University has been a leader in this area, offering the following degree apprenticeships: Audiology Chartered Manager Digital & Technology Solutions Embedded Electronic System Design & Development Nuclear Engineering Other programmes are awaiting approval: e.g. Logistics; Ordnance, Munitions & Explosives. Applications are always directed initially via the companies leading the programmes, but have a look at http://www.aston.ac.uk/study/degreeapprenticeships/ for more information.
#18BEFORE18 A reminder of the categories pupils using our planners should use to create their programme:
CAREERS FORUM SESSION 18 Friday 15th June (1.10pm)
‘Clinical Training and Life as an
Networking Qualifications Help with Decisions Challenging Yourself Beyond the Classroom Bablake Opportunity
Interviewer for Med School’ Former pupil and 5th Year medical undergrad Aaran Patel, currently studying medicine will lead this session.
www.18before18.co.uk has more info.
We are already planning an exciting new programme of talks for 2018-19 and would always welcome suggestions for areas to cover.
A REMINDER! ‘BEYOND BABLAKE’ WEEK (L6th) – Monday 2 July to Friday 6 July All L6th students are planning their schedule for this week and many of the year group have exciting plans already in place. Involvement with Sports Day (Senior/ Junior School), Bablake’s T20 festival, hosting a business day for our 4th years, CREST or EPQ research, and university open day/ taster day visits are all suitable options. If you are lacking ‘inspiration’, please talk to your form tutor or see MGAW a.s.a.p. to discuss further.
REMINDER OF THE KEY L6TH MOCK INTERVIEW DEADLINES
CONTACT BABLAKE CAREERS Mr Mark Woodward
www.2morrow-2day.com/mock-interview.html [CHOICE OF TOPIC: May 25 8pm] CV: Friday June 15 4pm ONLINE APPLICATION: Friday June 22 6pm
Email: mgw@bablake.coventry.sch.uk Twitter: @bablakecareers FB: www.facebook.com/bablakecareers Website: www.2morrow-2day.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin/markwoodward Blog: http://bablakecareers.tumblr.com/ Spotify: http://www.spotify.com/18before18 Instagram: @bablakecareers Careers Circulars: http://issuu.com/bablake/stacks