Careers Information
National Apprenticeship Week 2024
In addition to information and activities in lessons, there will be an apprenticeship information station in St Ursulas foyer all week featuring information on what apprenticeships are, how to apply, videos of real life examples of apprenticeships and a chance to speak to the careers team to discuss your future.
Careers advice, information and guidance
Every young person needs high-quality career guidance to make informed decisions about their future. Good career guidance is a necessity for social mobility: those young people without significant social capital or home support to draw upon have the most to gain from high-quality career guidance.
In 2013, Gatsby commissioned Sir John Holman to set out what career guidance in England would be like if it were good by international standards, resulting in the Good Career Guidance report. The eight benchmarks set out in the report serve as a framework for improvement in careers provision and have been adopted as part of the Government's Careers Strategy and statutory guidance for schools and colleges. In addition, The Careers & Enterprise Company now supports the implementation of the benchmarks in schools and colleges with a national network of support, resources and targeted funding.
Since the initial pilot of the Gatsby benchmarks in the North East of England, we have sought to gather evidence of the effectiveness of the Benchmarks, including a four-year evaluation by the University of Derby published in 2021 which found the benchmarks had a positive impact on students' career readiness and GCSE attainment.
The eight Gatsby benchmarks of Good Career Guidance are:
1. A stable careers programme
2. Learning from career and labour market information
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil
4. Linking curriculum learning to careers
5. Encounters with employers and employees
6. Experiences of workplaces
7. Encounters with further and higher education
8. Personal guidance
Careers education at Ursuline College
“Our mission is to inspire all our students to make the best transition possible into the right choice for their next steps, whether that is employment, further or higher education, and to support in the development of the skills needed to manage a fulfilling career in a changing world.”
What to expect
Key Stage 3 (Years 7-9)
- We run assemblies involving employers and guest speakers.
- An opportunity to meet a range of employers through a Career Detective Day.
- Introduction to the Unifrog platform with log in access for their school life at Ursuline College. Unifrog is a complete destinations platform, a one-stop-shop for whole-school careers guidance, KS3-KS5. It aims to level the playing field when it comes to students searching for the best opportunities. This impartial, user-friendly platform allows students to explore pathways throughout school, evidence key activities and competencies and draft and collate feedback on Personal Statements and CVs to submit the strongest possible applications.
- Our Careers Adviser, will be available at Year 9 Options Evening to answer any queries re GCSE options and careers.
- Our Careers Adviser will be available for one-to-one guidance from Year 9 onwards
Key Stage 4 (Year 10)
- A Careers Fair for Year 10 students and parents. An opportunity to meet employers, training providers and universities and hear them talk about routes into professions and careers.
- Our Careers Adviser will be available for one-to-one guidance in a scheduled appointment for every student.
- Students will have the opportunity to attend enterprise workshops.
- Post 16 Options Day in November. A chance for students to meet Student Subject Ambassadors and hear about life in Sixth Form, to meet local colleges and sample courses, and to learn more about apprenticeships and how to apply, in preparation for decisions and applications in Y11.
- Support with CV writing, including:
- How to write your CV.
- Dos and Don’ts – Writing a CV and Covering Letter.
- Example CV.
- Word CV template.
Key Stage 4 (Year 11)
- Open evenings for colleges to be advertised to students throughout the term.
- Ursuline Sixth Form open evening – 3rd November.
- Our Careers Adviser will be available for consultation at the Open Evening in November.
- Practice interviews offered to all students.
- One-to-one support available in autumn and spring terms for help with decisions about post-16 options.
- A Careers Fair for Year 11 students and parents. An opportunity to meet employers, training providers and universities and hear them talk about routes into professions and careers.
- Our Careers Advisor is available for one-to-one support on GCSE Results Day in August.
Year 12
- Life skills programme including planning for university and employment during spring term.
- Careers Fair for Year 12 students and parents. An opportunity to meet employers, training providers and universities and hear them talk about routes into professions and careers.
- One-to-one support available as needed.
- Work Experience Presentation.
- Work Experience Handbook.
Year 13
- One-to-one support available as needed for help with final decisions re degree choices and with applications for apprenticeships, higher apprenticeships and school leaver schemes.
- Our Careers Advisor is available for one-to-one support on A Level Results Day in August.
The next review of the information published: March 2024.
Useful Information Websites:
- UCAS Website – www.ucas.com
- Undergraduate higher education is a world of fascinating subjects that helps students reach new careers and higher earnings. With a huge range of courses available, it's important to research what's right for the individual. The website will show students all the options – including the alternatives to uni – to help them see the best way forward. Then, if they would like to apply for a course, we’ll show outline the process.
- National Apprenticeship Website – www.apprenticeships.org.uk
- Find out about apprenticeships. There are more than 250 occupations that offer apprenticeships. There are 3 levels; Intermediate, Advanced and Higher. Higher apprenticeships can provide an alternative route to gaining a degree level qualification. Apprenticeships are now available in new sectors such as Digital Marketing, Business Administration, Accountancy, Legal Executives and Engineering.
- UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) - UKCES Career Brochure
- Student friendly careers information, careers videos, world of work information and careers quiz such at: