Got your GCSE results? What next?

So, its exam results season.  And just when the sun has arrived, and there is still plenty of sport to participate in or watch!  This blog will look at your options, and what to do next!

Writtle University College

    Firstly, regardless of what your results are this week, well done on having got through your GCSE years.  There will have been highs and lows, friendships made and experiences to remember. With the ‘raising of the participation age’ a few years ago, you'll be continuing your learning one way or another, through 6^th form, college or an apprenticeship - and with better qualifications meaning more money, who wouldn’t want to carry on learning?

If you get the results you expected, or better and now want to change your ideas about what to do next, or if you don’t know what to do, its not too late!  There are a few things you’ll need to do to get everything organised. 

- Talking your ideas through at home with your family/carers

They know you well and might have some ideas.  Just remember that qualifications and options might have changed a bit since other family members did them, so its worth getting information that’s as up to date as possible as well.  

- Talk to the careers adviser at school, your local college or at the National Careers Service about what your options. 

Image sourced from Wikimedia
Author: Diego

There are always some students who do not do as well as expected.  This can happen for a variety of reasons.  The first reaction might be to panic, and assume that its ‘life over’.  It is definitely not the end of the world, even if it feels like it!  Understanding why this has happened will be the first step.  There will be a range of college courses, apprenticeships and traineeships that will help you ‘catch up’ to where you had expected to be. 

This could be a very good chance to take a moment and reconsider what you want to do next.  Don’t forget it may have been 6-8 months ago you applied to 6^th form or college, in which time actually your thinking about future courses and careers could have changed.

So, what practically do you need to do if you didn’t get the grades or have changed your ideas about your future?

Talk to your family

Talk to the careers adviser at school

Talk to the careers adviser at college

Contact the National Careers Service staff about your options

Find out about vacancies on local courses you might be interested in (a college admissions team, training provider or 6^th form office will know what their vacancies are!)

Check the difference between courses, e.g. a sport science course will be different to sport studies

Talking to your school careers adviser, or a careers adviser at a local college will be a very good idea. They will be able to talk all the options, and won’t push you towards one option, they will help you decide what’s best for you, even if its applying to another institution.

Keep an open mind about how to get to the ‘end destination’ of your career.  For most industries there will be several routes and entry points into them.  Over the next 40 years, your ‘career’ is likely to take several unexpected twists and turns, so taking some advice now will help your career path off to a good start.



After all, your career is likely to look more like a game of snakes and ladders than in the past.  So taking some advice from family, school staff and careers advisers will all help!

Image sourced from Wikimedia Author: Druysts.t

 

 

Is this the end or a new beginning?

Image sourced from Wikimedia
Author: Diego

Now that the end of term has gone, with exams finished and coursework handed in, you’ve finally reached the finish line!  And with the Olympics happening, there will be plenty of time to enjoy watching them.

 

But it's not quite ‘all over’ yet. It will really help you if you view the next few weeks as a new beginning too. The reasons why are as follows. Firstly, it would be good to spend time reflecting on what you have found interesting, challenging or dull this year and why. The reason? By reflecting on the knowledge gained this year you can decide if or how you could use it in a potential career. Does the thought of using what you’ve learnt about equine nutrition, landscape design or commercial horticulture excite you?  What does this tell you about your career aspirations?  Do you need to talk this through with your tutor or Careers Adviser? 

Secondly, it is not just about the knowledge that you have learnt.  It’s useful to reflect how your skills have developed this year.  This is equally as important as reflecting on your knowledge.  Employers and universities want to see that you can identify and apply the skills you’ve gained to a new situation, e.g. a job or a postgraduate course.  Not only is it important to show others you can do this, but it is crucial for you too.  Why?  Because you need to be able to compare what you have to offer to what an employer or university are asking for.  If you can’t demonstrate that you are a good match, an employer or course scheme manager won’t do this for you.  So part of this ‘looking back’ is about applying this to developing your career/study plans for the future.





Planning ahead will help you graduate!

Are you wondering about whether to use the knowledge and skills you’re gaining or if there’s a ‘better something’ out there?  Within each degree area there will be a variety of related and unrelated careers or further study you could go into.  About 80% of graduate jobs don’t require a specific degree subject, so you could apply for any number of interesting graduate schemes or jobs.  Roughly 10% of graduates will get onto a graduate scheme, often these schemes do not want a specific subject.  There are a huge number of SME (small and medium enterprises) who are very keen to take on students who have developed graduate level skills, in a variety of career ideas.  Just being a graduate itself will give you plenty of skills and experience which will be appreciated by employers if you can present them well enough.



Image sourced from Wikimedia
Author: Petey21

So, the end of this academic year is here, and the beginning of the future is just around the corner!  Is this true for everyone?  If you are finishing your degree course, the answer will be an obvious yes.  But if you are in your first or second year, it is also worth viewing this summer as a new beginning too.  Doing an audit will help you identify what opportunities might be worth targeting to develop your skills or test out your newly acquired knowledge over the next academic year.

 

Your career is going to last a very long time, and it can take time to find the ‘perfect’ career or vacancy - this won’t always happen straight after university.  Did you know you can use the College careers service for up to 3 years after finishing your course?  Careers support is often about helping students audit themselves, to develop their own career management skills.  And you can use the service forever if you are an employer looking to fill a vacancy in the future!  So, whatever year you are in, now is a good time to celebrate the end and start to plan for the beginning.

Written by Mark Yates, Careers Coordinator