Miss Hamer’s support for Year 11 students who are considering an apprenticeship

Miss Hamer, our Careers Adviser who works closely with Ms Mannion, our Careers Leader, is very excited about Apprenticeship Week, as it helps to raise awareness of the importance and value of Apprenticeships to our students. Miss Hamer is supporting our Year 11 students who are applying for Apprenticeships and helping with CVs, applications, and interview preparation. We were delighted to catch up with Miss Hamer to find out more about her work, the expert guidance she gives our students and why she believes Apprenticeships are a great career choice.

“Apprenticeships are a fantastic opportunity for young people starting out in their careers – they offer the chance to gain a recognised qualification, learn skills on the job direct from employers, and earn a regular salary. Apprenticeships, without a doubt, give young people a head start in their careers, and any student who successfully completes an Apprenticeship after leaving school, will have given themselves a great advantage.

“There is now such a huge variety of Apprenticeships available in the UK, across all sectors – from building trades, health and beauty and animal care, to healthcare, IT, finance and law – pretty much any qualification can now be achieved via an Apprenticeship. With qualifications ranging from entry level to Degree level, Apprenticeships are offered by small businesses, as well as large global organisations.  I am so pleased that each year we are working with more and more employers from the local community who are looking to take on Apprentices, and equally delighted that so many more students, and their parents and carers, are seeing the value of Apprenticeships as a post-16 and post-18 option.

“Any student who expresses an interest in Apprenticeships during their one-to-one careers meeting is referred to the website www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk/ and shown how they can create an account, search, and apply for roles. We also discuss the benefits of being proactive and contacting businesses they would like to work for to ask if they will be taking on Apprentices and, if so, how they can apply. We also post all local Apprenticeship vacancies onto the Year 11 and Year 13 Careers Google Classroom.

“We support the students in putting together CVs and applications letters, and completing applications forms when needed. We often arrange for employers to come into school to talk to interested students about the opportunities on offer, and where we can, we will also arrange for students to visit the workplaces.

“It is a truly rewarding experience to support students from their initial interest in an apprenticeship, through the application process, and finally to see them offered an opportunity to start a fulfilling career. I encourage students, parents and carers to explore these qualifications and find out more about just how valuable they can be.“