Last half term Year 9 and Year 11 students both had their options evenings and are now thinking about the next steps in their academic careers. Our Year 13 students have received their university offers; they’re now finalising their destinations and making final preparations to go off to university.

At Ark Putney Academy we give our students impartial advice and great opportunities to enable them to make the best possible decisions for their future. We have a careers advisor, Ms Jo Carroll, who works with our students three days per week  to help them choose an appropriate destination when they leave APA.

Through the careers programme we expect our students to:

• identify their skills/preferences and how these relate to their future career plans

• identify potential realistic careers
• understand the pathway to achieve their career goals (University, A-levels, GCSEs and employment)

Our students should form an understanding of the unique skills they possess and how these can be applied to choose a suitable destination.

Every student has a class based careers lesson each term where they may learn about workplace skills, career options, how to apply for jobs etc.  Ms Carroll is also available for student drop in sessions at lunchtime, after school, and by teacher referral.  Parents/Carers are always welcome to attend the student’s interview and ask any questions.

Our students need intensive support when they approach the biggest transitions: all of our students in Years 11, 12 and 13 have already had one-on-one careers counselling to enable them to best prepare for their intended destination.  This includes support with CV writing, university and college applications and work experience.

We can’t do any of this on our own and our most valuable experiences are often off-site or with visitors.  This year, to name just a few examples, we have:

• taken 8 Year 11 students to The Law Society for the day where they met with a number of legal professionals;
• taken 14 Year 12 students to Kingston University’s Business School where they got a chance to attend real university lectures;
• provided work experience at Battersea Power Station, local schools and law firms
• had visits from Politicians, Entrepreneurs, Strategy Consultants and Civil Rights Activists who talked to students about their careers.

To grow our network Ark Putney is appealing to all of our former students to connect to our alumni network www.futurefirst.org. We currently have over 100 members; all with a plethora of different skills and experience. We call upon our alumni periodically to offer advice and deliver information sessions or skills based workshops.

Ms Carroll says:

My overarching aim is that every student leaves Ark Putney understanding their own skills. I want them to know what options are available to them, whether it is an apprenticeship, university or employment. I want them to be happy in their careers. Whereas in the past we might have had 1 job for life, young people coming up through the education system today are likely to have something more like 10, so the dynamic and requirements of employees has changed. I want our students to leave school with the ability to continually develop their skillset in order to secure the best outcomes possible.

Ark Putney Academy’s motto is preparing every student to be a pillar in any community. We achieve this by encouraging students to be well rounded, self-aware individuals. This does not happen solely in the classroom but by offering opportunities to experience the outside world and develop an understanding of what is required to become a contributing member of society. The school and the careers service are both always open to suggestions for ways in which we can offer a broader range of opportunities to our students. If you are someone who works in an industry, or knows of a programme or speaker that you think could benefit our students please email Ms Carroll on j.carroll@arkputneyacademy.org

 

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