Inspiring and Exciting: An Experience of Work Week

Year 11s enjoyed an "Experience of Work" week this week (24 – 28 May), jam-packed with activities, online workshops, career insight interviews and live sessions to give our Year 11s a real flavour of the world of work.

From sessions to help pupils understand job descriptions and how to tackle CVs and cover letters to live guest discussions around different types of careers, there was something for every pupil to benefit from when thinking about their future. Pupils also had access to more than 40 career insight video interviews which have been recorded throughout the last year to deepen pupils’ understanding of a host of sectors including everything from TV production to engineering to getting into the worlds of Government, politics and the Civil Service.

One live session was from Ollie at 8billionideas, an organisation with a mission to give every student on the planet the skills and belief to change the world. It gave pupils a real confidence boost that, with drive, hard work and the mind-set to keep learning, they can turn anything they love into a career.

Ollie covered the skills needed to become a successful entrepreneur, including problem solving, people skills and decision-making skills. But, he said, “You can have all the skills under the sun, but if you don’t have drive, what use are they?” He encouraged pupils to follow their passions, whether it’s design, fashion, sport of grilled cheese sandwiches and turn these into a career by working hard, talking to the right people and using the tools we have available to us, citing the benefits of social media for many start-up businesses.

Ollie gave examples of successful entrepreneurs beyond the household names we are so familiar with. Examples included Mikaila Ulmer, who started making and selling lemonade at the age of 11 using just the things she had access to in her cupboard. Mikaila now has a net worth of $1 and 5m doing what she loves.

A huge thank you to all the speakers involved in creating a "CV-worthy" week for Year 11s. It was full of reflection, learning and action, so that even without personally arranged work experience, which is still very difficult due to Covid-19 restrictions, they had the opportunity to take active steps in their career development.

Alleyn’s pupils were inspired and excited by what they learned. Speaking of a careers insight video featuring broadcaster Simon Mundie, one Year 11 said: “SO, SO, SO interesting. I have listened to this talk before but thought I would revisit it since my mind is on jobs at the moment. He has made doing Broadcast Journalism at University a strong contender and I really enjoy listening to his podcast.

The talk from Ollie at 8billion ideas, another pupils said: “I learnt that it is never too late to involve yourself in the industry and there is a world of opportunities. You can bring really original ideas into the job which is amazing because I think we could all make products that benefit a large audience.”