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BACKGROUND
I started Careers and Education Services in 2001 after working for
various schools, careers services and Local Education Authorities
since 1987. I have always specialised in the more able client and
since the mid 1990s had primarily worked in grammar schools. I saw
that there was a need for a specialist careers adviser working
across the state and private sector, who was able to work with able
students and their families, helping them choose between the options
available. I also knew that a lot of careers provision in the state
and independent sector was fairly poor. I have subsequently worked in a
variety of schools, running a range of
careers services. I enjoy the variety of working across many
different schools and dealing with a range of students, their
families and school staff. I genuinely think I have made a huge
difference to the schools I have worked in, by bringing a
professionalism and focus to careers work. I stress to schools the
importance of getting parents involved wherever possible, this is
because even in the most prestigious schools, a high proportion of
parents would not have been to university and will have limited
knowledge of the current higher education system. In addition,
parents who have been to university often give advice to their
children based on their own experience which is inevitably outdated,
and the advice given can be dangerously wrong in the current
situation.
WHAT IS CAREERS EDUCATION?
The term ‘careers and careers education‘ is fairly dull and
I know that it is not the 'Coolest' of areas. A better
description would be 'futures' and 'futures education' but I
fear we are stuck with the label careers. From my experience in
many schools, careers work has a low priority. However if we
accept that a prime aim of education is to produce the next
generation of productive workers, then futures work with
students and their families, I always stress working with the
family and not just the pupil is vital and exciting work. Good
futures work should:
help students discover what their strengths, aptitudes and
interests are
help them to find out about the opportunities available
help them gain the skills, experience and qualifications
needed to move on effectively
help them set short, medium and long term goals
help them choose the next stage that will advance their
interests
How this is done will vary from school to school but in all
cases I believe the role of an outside specialist is essential.
Careers teachers and tutors simply do not have the time to
develop the expertise and are too close to the pupil to have a
dispassionate perspective. In addition it is more cost effective
to employ specialists to do certain tasks and free up teachers
time to do what they do best 'teach'. I also know from my own
experience that parents appreciate schools bringing outside
specialists in and that when done effectively, it increases the
bond between the family and the school, enabling them to work
together for the students’ best welfare.
WHAT SERVICES DO I OFFER
The advantage of running my own agency is that I can be very
flexible and adaptable. The main services I offer are:
running Morrisby tests for years 10-12
giving careers advice to years 11-13
helping year 12-13 choose between higher education and career
options
running the coursefinder service with follow up interviews for year 12
helping students produce effective personal statements for
their UCAS application
I can also run training days for teachers and helped organise
careers conferences and events.
THE BENEFIT OF USING CAREERS AND EDUCATION SERVICES
I know how to work with parents/pupils in independent schools,
what their aims and ambitions
are and how to help them achieve their longer term goals
I enjoy working with parents and always ask schools to invite
them to interviews. Most
careers advisers are scared of parents because they ask the
awkward questions but I find having them involved makes the
process far more effective and lessens the chance of poor and
outdated information being used as the basis for decisions.
I am one of the most experienced Morrisby users in the country
and feedback from my
interviews by parents/pupils is always very positive
I have organised work experience for many years and know the
problems, concerns
and difficulties and how best to overcome them and achieve a
safe and valuable programme
I keep up to date with what is going on in the world of higher
education and careers. If
you receive my newsletters you will know I put a
great store in information
and being up to date with everything I say
I am cost effective in that I free up teaching time, bring in
expertise and can offer
services, such as Morrisby, at very competitive rates because I
have low overheads
I use three very experienced careers advisers to help me when I am busy.
I only use people with many years experience and who are used to working in my market.
My agency is thus small enough to care and offer a very personal service but with the capacity to run larger contracts.
NEXT STEP
Please look at the services I offer, as well as the testimonials
from parents/pupils and the list of institutions I have worked with.
I am happy to send references and further testimonials should you
wish.
If you would like to discuss potential careers work with me,
please get in touch by email.
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