On Friday 11th July the University of Kent hosted an Employability Day for Year 10’s (15-16 year olds) from the Archbishop’s School. The event was organised by the Education Business Partnership (EBP) Kent and hosted employers from a range of professions. The students had a full schedule of activities on the day that offered them support in their employment and training journey. This included looking at their CVs, receiving interviewing tips as well as general advice and guidance. The main area was dedicated as a ‘Marketplace’ of organisations whereby young people would spend time at each of the stands asking questions. This allowed the young people to find out about each stands specialisms, the different pathways into those professions and the sector as a whole. The opportunity to meet employers and professionals aimed to boost young people’s confidence when speaking with employers, people, and organisations, for when they eventually enter the workplace. The Marketplace was a chance for each young person to either confirm or develop long term aspirations. It was also a chance to be taken out of their comfort zone and have conversations that were perhaps more spontaneous than they are used to.
Kent’s Leonie Charles, Tosin Bodumde and Qi Zheng, participated in the event and had a stand showcasing Technical Careers in Higher Education. Here’s what they had to say about the day:
“I really enjoyed spending the morning with the Year 10 students and sharing what it’s like to be a Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences Technician. Being a Laboratory Technician is a career that many people don’t even realise exists, so it felt important to help shine a light on it. It’s always tricky to know what you want to do when you’re younger, so I hope we’ve helped broaden their horizons. These young people are the future! I only wish something like this had been available to me at their age; it could have made a real difference in shaping my own career path.
Technicians are often an overlooked role, so it’s important to raise awareness and help young people see the wide range of opportunities available. We play a vital part in nearly every industry!” – Leonie Charles, Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences Technician.
“The event was great! There were a lot of enthusiastic and curious Year 10 students. I definitely think that the majority of them were pleasantly surprised by our demonstrations, and would now consider a technical role in the future.
It can be very daunting to figure out what kind of career you want in the future while you are young. My hope is that sharing our experiences, insights and expertise helps alleviate some anxiety about what kind of careers are available, and demonstrates that you do not need to have the best grades to have a good career.” – Tosin Bodumde, Assistant Technician in Chemistry.
“It was great to engage with the Year 10 students and share our experiences from different technical fields. During the session, we each spoke about our individual career paths and current roles. I demonstrated a walking quadruped robot to show an example of an engineering project, while Leonie showcased a reaction time test from Sports Science, and Tosin presented a UV light experiment from Chemical Sciences. The students asked thoughtful questions about career options, GCSE requirements, and recruitment processes. It was encouraging to see their genuine interest in technical careers, and I hope our insights helped them better understand the range of opportunities available.
Sharing our real-world experiences helps bring technical careers to life for young people. It gives them a clearer picture of the diverse pathways they can take, breaks down misconceptions, and hopefully inspires them to explore roles they may not have considered before.” – Qi Zheng, Technical Specialist in Electronics.
The charity, the school and most importantly, the young people themselves, expressed their gratitude for all those who got involved in the Employability Day. There was a real diversity of interest amongst the year group, in terms of interests and aspirations, but they really enjoyed the opportunity to meet everyone. They enjoyed being able to discover a range of different opportunities and meet so many interesting people. There is no doubt that they would have wanted to spend longer in the sessions on offer.
The event organisers shared their data and feedback about the day. 94% of all students evaluated found the experience of visiting the Marketplace, to be ‘Positive’ or ‘Exceptional’. 91% felt more knowledgeable of businesses or employers within their area. 85% feel more comfortable questioning employers about their company. 96% found the whole experience to be worthwhile and that it had a positive impact on them. Here are some of the student comments:
“I know what I want to do now, it was great being able to visit the stands.”
“I wish we had longer in the marketplace, I was enjoying the conversations.”
“I was nervous, but the people were really nice and so interesting.”
“This has definitely given me some options, and I feel fine meeting new people.”
Congratulations on all those involved and a huge shout out to Leonie, Tosin and Qi for being exceptional ambassadors and champions of technical careers.
