Parents & Carers
Careers Guernsey Newsletter - Autumn 2016
Welcome to the 2nd edition of our parents & carers newsletter
If you are new to our newsletters, our aim is to update and inform you as parents/carers of students in Years 7-11, with timely and relevant careers information. We do hope you find the information below useful, if you have any comments or if there is anything that you would like more details on then please do let us know, we welcome any feedback.
Our next newsletter will be available in February.
INFORMATION FOR YEARS 7 - 11
Year 11 and Post-16 choices
The autumn term in Year 11 will see your son/daughter receive lots of information about their Post-16 choices. During October all schools will receive a joint presentation from the Sixth Form Centre and the Guernsey College of Further Education for students and parents about the range of subjects and courses available after Year 11.
There are also information evenings scheduled for November, these are important dates as you and your son/daughter have the opportunity to visit the Sixth Form Centre and the College of FE campuses to see the facilities on offer, the learning environment and to find out more information from the tutors about the subjects and courses available.
Sixth Form Centre Information Evening
Tuesday 15th November at 7.15pm
Guernsey College of FE Open Evenings
Delancey campus - Tuesday 22nd November 5-8pm
Coutanchez campus - Wednesday 23rd November 5-8pm
Les Ozouets campus - Thursday 24th November 5-8pm
Our Careers Advisers will also be visiting schools during the autumn term and should your son/daughter like some support and advice about their Post-16 options, their career aspirations or if they don't know what to do next and in the future, then they can let their Careers Teacher or tutor know that they would know like an appointment to meet with a Careers Adviser. Alternatively, we can also make appointments to see students at our offices after school or during the holidays, parents are also welcome to attend. To arrange a careers appointment for your son/daughter contact us on: 733044 or sean.parry@gov.gg
For further information about the Post-16 choices for your son/daughter and the key dates during Year 11, see our Parents and Carers guide to Post-16 choices by clicking on the button below.
Year 10 - Work Experience
During Year 10 students will get a valuable opportunity to undertake some work experience. For most students this will consist of a one week placement with one of their chosen employers.
Our Work Experience Manager coordinates all the work experience placements and works closely with the schools and employers to arrange suitable placements for your son/daughter. Schools will undertake their work experience placements at different times during the academic year, the school schedule for 2016-17 can be seen below:
September - St Anne's
November - Le Murier
March - Les Beaucamps
May - Le Mare De Carteret
June - Grammar School
July - St Sampson's
Year round - Les Voies
Work experience is important as it allows students to experience different workplaces, to gain an understanding of working life and it can help them to find out more about areas of work that they might be interested in. We encourage you to discuss your son/daughters work experience with them and to help them choose suitable placements.
If your son/daughter is not successful in achieving one of their first choices, they can also apply for work experience at their chosen company in the holidays, after school or at weekends. All work experience is good experience!
For further details on work experience click on the button below.
Years 7-9 New Careers lessons
For the first time students in Years 7-9 will receive support from us during their careers and PSHE lessons in schools. This builds on the success of our Year 6 project as we continue to support students as they progress into secondary school. We will be delivering sessions to each year group with the aim to improve self awareness and raise aspiration's. Some of the topics that we will be covering include:
Year 9 - Decision making for GCSE choices
Year 9 - How and where to research careers information including how to use careers.gg
Year 8 - Understanding the different types of careers and the benefits & challenges of different jobs
Year 7 - Understanding why people work and how the job market changes over time
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
Qualification changes
We mentioned in our previous newsletter of the changes to GCSE qualifications and the introduction from 2017 of a new grading system of 9-1 which will replace the traditional A*-G grades. English Language is the first new GCSE that will show the new grading system from 2017, other subjects will follow over the next few years. For more details on these changes see:
www.aqa.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/policy/gcse-and-a-level-changes/9-1
WHAT HAVE WE BEEN UP TO?
Each newsletter will include a feature on the work of Careers Guernsey
The calm of the summer is already starting to feel like a distant memory as the start of the autumn term is a busy time for us with planning our events and our support and activities with all schools. Each school has a partnership agreement with us which allows us to work together to tailor a programme of support that contributes to the Big Picture Curriculum and preparing your son/daughters for the world of work.
We have also been planning for next years Careers Show and Higher Education Event. Following consultation with employers, teaching staff, Universities and importantly students, we will be making some alterations to the format of these events and introducing some new activities.
A new development for 2017 will be a recruitment event aimed at school/Sixth Form/college leavers and University students/graduates. More information will be provided through schools and direct messaging to university students.
for their future
INTERESTED IN CAREERS IN DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY - coding, programming & robotics?
The Digital Greenhouse in Market Square are launching their community skills programme in the form of their Digital Learning Centre. On offer are a range of community clubs and groups to complement established qualification pathways, including adult coding and robotics clubs, where people can sign up to a six week programme working with microbits, programmable lego and software to develop digital skills.
Not to be left out, young people are being offered the same experience through after school clubs in both Coding, Programming and Robotics (aged 10+) and a Creative Innovators club (aged 14+) for young people looking to build careers in digital marketing, design and the creative sector. These are term-time courses directed at young people in full-time education, expanding and developing their skills in digital technology and promoting digital career pathways. Spaces are limited and are allocated on a first come, first served basis, register your interest here.
Just £30 for a half term. Free for children of Allocated Desk Members.
KIDZANIA - a child size City where kids are in charge!
We're always thinking of new ways to develop and improve our events such as making our annual Careers Show more interactive and skills focused. One of the changes that we will be introducing at next years Careers Show which is on Thursday 23rd March at Beau Sejour, is a skills challenge competition for students. Whilst researching different skills based challenges over the summer, we came across a unique careers role play attraction called Kidzania in London.
Based at the Westfield Shopping Centre in London, Kidzania is a child sized city that provides more than 60 real life role play experiences for 4-14 year olds. Young people get to act out a wide range of careers including a pilot, chocolatier, sports commentator, radio DJ, recycling specialist, forensic investigator, dental assistant, news reporter, paramedic, an ice cream technician and many others.
We like this concept of learning about work through role play activities as it is a fun and engaging way to motivate young people about jobs and careers that they might like to do in the future. To find out more about Kidzania, look here: http://london.kidzania.com/en-uk.
FEATURE CAREER- GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Graphic Design is essentially art with a purpose
Graphic Designers work on a variety of products and activities, such as websites, advertising, books, magazines, posters, computer games, product packaging, exhibitions and displays, corporate communications and corporate identity, i.e. giving organisations a visual 'brand'.
Graphic designers will work to a brief agreed with the client, creative director or account manager and will develop creative ideas and concepts. The appropriate media and style has to be chosen to meet the client's objectives. The work demands creative flair, up-to-date knowledge of industry software and a professional approach to time, costs and deadlines.
What opportunities are there in Graphic Design on Guernsey?
The Creative Industries sector has grown over recent years and there are now many creative agencies and freelance designers that do a wide of range of design activities on Guernsey. Work experience for aspiring designers is key and fortunately many of these agencies take on students for work placements every year. To find out more about the variety of design work that these agencies do on Guernsey, take a look at some of their work on the websites below. There are graphic designers working across the island in creative agencies, creative departments in large companies, self-employed etc. Here are some examples of design work in the island:
http://www.twodegreesnorth.co.uk/our-work/
http://www.thepottingsheddesign.com/portfolio/
https://www.indulgemedia.com/work
http://www.webdesignguernsey.com/case-studies/
http://pulseight.com/portfolio/
How to become a Graphic Designer
To work in the Creative Industry it is essential to have strong creative flair, design skills, the imagination to develop original designs and a good eye for layout. Most Graphic Designers will have a degree background in a visual arts subject such as graphic design, fine art and illustration. Students can start to learn these skills by taking creative subjects at school such as art & design, graphics and photography. These skills can be developed further by students then taking a Post-16 course such as the Creative diploma at the College of Further Education or A-Level subjects at the Sixth Form Centre.
As competition within the industry is strong it is advisable for students to undertake work experience placements as this will help students to network with designers, to learn commercial skills and to develop their portfolio of work. It is common for aspiring designers to create their own website to showcase their portfolio and to demonstrate their skills. Students can also gain useful experience by getting involved in community projects, volunteering with the Arts Commission or participating in mentoring schemes organized by employers and Creative Industries Guernsey.
Where to find more information
http://www.arts.gg Arts Commission Guernsey
http://www.cig.gg Creative Industries Guernsey
The feature career in our next newsletter is Nursing
CAREERS THAT USE ART & DESIGN
This section of the newsletter is where we give you some career ideas linked to subject areas, Maths was the featured subject in our last newsletter and for this edition the subject in focus is Art & Design. All students get to study Art & Design in school up to Year 9, they will then get to choose during the 'options' in Year 9 if they want to continue with the subject to GCSE in Years 10 & 11.
Art & Design is a broad subject that encompasses many areas including: fine art, photography, textiles, sculpture, printing, graphics, 3D design etc. Consequently when it comes to thinking about careers directly linked to art & design there are so many job roles to consider. Below are 10 careers (graphic designer not included!) that we have chosen that use art & design:
1. Animator
2. Architect
3. Web Designer
4. Jewellery maker
5. Curator
6. Make-up Artist
7. Interior Designer
8. Visual Merchandiser
9. Digital Marketer
10. Art Therapist
Click on the buttons below to find out more about career options in Art & Design
The subject in focus in our next newsletter is Biology
GET IN TOUCH WITH US
Email: CareersGuernsey@gov.gg
Website: www.careers.gg
Location: Education Services, Grange Road House, Grange Road, St. Peter Port, GY1 1RQ
Phone: 01481 706565
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Careers-Guernsey-155612177817916/
Twitter: @CareersGuernsey