It became clear quite quickly,
that the C-19 Lockdown would create a challenge to the usual Progression
Week Activities of college, this year. Previously, students have had
trips to companies, visiting speakers, challenging workshops, even competitions
to take part in, all with the intention of encouraging reflection upon
current subjects being studied and their relevance to what students want to do
when they leave college. The challenge facing staff this year was to
embrace the importance of such reflection and planning, whilst coming up with
alternative activities to achieve the same outcomes, and we think we did a
great job.
A total of 44 virtual workshops,
facilitated by Teams and Zoom technology, allowed us to bring expertise from
the world of work and education into student homes, covering input from most
teaching departments. In many ways, it was arguably more successful,
(perhaps more intimate?), than visiting speakers at the front of the
classroom, because students were able to listen from the comfort of their
homes, whilst asking pertinent questions should the need the arise. Another
advantage of this approach was that many of the activities were recorded and
are soon to be released via the Long Road ClickView Library, under the banner
of “Insights into Progression, Short Film Series, 2020”.
This allows those who were unable to attend workshops the opportunity to catch
up with useful content. Films will be available showing interviews with all of
the following organisations :
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Our thanks go out to all of those
who took part, with additional thanks to Turners Soham Ltd, (sadly, their film
was corrupted (!) but students who attended the live interview reported how
beneficial it was), and our “Women in Sport Alumni” and “Business Studies
Alumni”, whose films we hope to add soon. Oh yes, and on the competition
front, it was great to see one of our students, Jake McEvoy, win the Runners Up
Award in Anglia Ruskin University’s National Story Telling Competition,
with his short film, “The
Guest” , described as, ‘a clever story’ with, ‘some really
imaginative framing and a very good reveal at the end’. Well done Jake!
Of course, thinking about the
future doesn’t need to be restricted to Progression Week, so we are keen to
promote awareness of the new offering from the Progression Department, our
fortnightly Careers e-Mag. This publication goes from strength to
strength, highlighting topical content for potential Progression Routes (HE,
Apprenticeships, Gap Year, Job Seeking and Employability Skills) and the archive
for these magazines can be found here.
To help students get the most out of the Summer Break, we would encourage
looking at features in past and future editions, including Virtual
University Open Days, Virtual Workshops (including CV and Interview
Preparation), and in the absence of ‘physical’ opportunities, Virtual Work
Experience. This e-Mag series will continue throughout the summer and
beyond, building on earlier work and to help students to contribute to student
Progression Plans for next year, and we wish you all great success.
Andy Goodwin
Head of Progression and Careers
Leader
