beyond school
Jobs & Placements
All children living in England (not Wales or Scotland) and aged 13-19 will have access to Connexions, a service that allocates them a personal advisor for careers and personal development. This is intended to ease them over the school-leaving period and offer advice about what to do next.
Work experience
While still at school, most young people have a fortnight of work experience during Year 10 or Year 11. They will have preparation at school and some support – the school will be in touch daily with the employer and will visit at least once during the placement.
Schools and colleges can always assist with work experience placements, but taking the initiative is also an option. Try www.work-experience.org.uk for ideas. Once your son or daughter has a placement, bear the following in mind:
- They need a notebook to jot down instructions like how to log on to the computer and people's names.
- They need a watch so as not to be back late from breaks.
- They need to know exactly how to get to the place of work and to have some idea of the surrounding area.
- They need to know how to answer the phone politely (and use the name of the company confidently) in case this arises.
School leavers
Young people change jobs far more often than they used to, and almost any job can form a stepping-stone to another. It is important to use each job to add to all-round employability – at a first job there is always plenty to learn.
- Ensure that a clear job description is provided; keep it in a safe place and refer to it.
- Ensure there is a 'line manager' or similar whom your child can go to with questions and problems.
- After a problem at work (grumpiness, tardiness, rudeness are common difficulties) a face-to-face apology will work wonders, but might be hard for your child to do without encouragement.
- Getting to work on time, looking neat and sticking to lunch breaks are all important.
- Listening to instructions and remembering them are quite hard for some first-jobbers to master!
- To help with progress, you need to keep a list of what skills are being gained (including interpersonal, communication, etc) and examples of problem solving at work. This will help on a future CV.
- Bear in mind that second jobs will need referees. Your son or daughter should start to plan who this could be.
- If you want more information on 'modern apprenticeships', which provide training while on the job, visit www.realworkrealpay.info.
Jobs for College Leavers
Graduate recruitment is now big business for agencies. Fewer firms operate a 'milk round' – they expect graduates to be recruited for them or apply directly to different departments. This makes it harder for graduates who need to be more focused and aware of what jobs are suitable for them.
Careers advisors suggest a proactive or assertive approach, i.e. finding out if companies employ people to do work experience and finding useful contacts in places where your son or daughter might like to work.
There is no substitute for finding out as much as possible about possible employers before making contact.
www.prospects.ac.uk is a good starting point for this process. It's a highly practical site, which is full of up-to-date advice.
It is worth remembering that most employers will expect a CV to show evidence of some successful work experience or employment.
When they've landed a job
Starting work in a new job can be daunting. This may be something your child has to deal with themselves, but if they are living with you or near you, you can help make the process easier.
When things aren't right at work – it's not what they expected, it's not what they feel was promised – the tendency is for young people either to over-react, or to mutely accept everything while seething internally.
Talk over how to handle some of these stressful situations with your child – unlike their A-levels in subjects unfamiliar to you, this is one aspect of life where you may have a lot of experience. Think about how your workplace treats young recruits and try to see your child from an employer's point of view. Avoid any temptation to get involved!
If you have behaved supportively before work starts, hopefully your child will confide in you about worries as they arise.
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