Care, guidance and support BSB futures and the post-school journey In Autumn 2021, BSB Futures found a home in the Pathfinder Hub, a newly created segment of the Care, Guidance and Support team aimed at helping Secondary students to explore their aspirations beyond BSB. This was not only a physical move as the BSB Futures office is now firmly embedded within the post-16 space in Mercator, but it was also an ideological move; under the Care, Guidance and Support umbrella, the programme focuses more than ever on raising the student aspirations and promoting self-reflection throughout the Secondary journey. The Futures programme helps students to make well-informed choices about future career opportunities based on real life examples and mentoring. This shift is evident in a number of growing initiatives. In addition to its staple career and university talks, BSB Futures now offers students 1:1 meetings with mentors working or studying in their field of interest. All Secondary students have the opportunity to get specific about career concerns that they may not otherwise raise in a group setting and get an honest glimpse into what actually happens behind the scenes of their ‘dream job’. These sessions can be especially useful for older students as they move toward university applications or other post-BSB pathways. Kheya, a Year 12 student considering a career in Finance, was paired with professionals at Goodyear, Barclays and Alpha FMC: 26 • The British School of Brussels
“Having these bespoke sessions is really enriching and stimulating to my learning,” she said. “I wanted to know more about what a career in Finance entailed. I was given lots of specific advice about how to excel in finance and how the university structure works. I’ve learnt that there are many things to do, however it is ok to make mistakes. I’ve also learnt how to make the most of my time here at BSB.” Two of the professionals who helped Kheya were themselves former BSB students, a population that has become increasingly active across BSB Futures programming. Alumni of all ages and professional backgrounds have proven as enthusiastic about imparting their wisdom and experience as we have been to welcome them back; after all, who can offer a more relevant perspective than someone who may have literally sat in our students’ places only a few years ago?
