Careers
At GSA we believe all our students have the right to make well informed decisions about their future. As part of our Careers Programme we ensure that all students have access to a Careers Advisor at all times who can support them to make the right choices throughout their school life and or the future. Support is also extended to parents and guardians so that they are fully involved in the guidance process.
Students can get support with:
- Personal advice and guidance.
- Information to support with placements and Work Experience.
- Support with CVs, mock interviews and preparing for the world of work.
- Support with Labour Market information and information related to certain industries.
- Encounters with Employers, Local training providers, Apprenticeship Providers and FE and HE institutions.
- Links with local businesses.
- Advice on subject choice and grade requirements.
- Support for Parents about their child’s options and future concerns.
- For more information, download the Provider Access Policy Statement in policies page.
As Part of our Careers Programme we ensure:
- All students have access to personalised Careers Education Information Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) from Years 7-13.
- A comprehensive Personal Social Health Education (PSHE) programme for student's based on our CEIAG Spiral.
- Careers advice is available at Parents Evenings or through one to one appointments.
- Bespoke software is available with access to labour market information for parents and student access both within school and at home.
- Work Experience/ Placements for all in Year 10 and Post 16.
- Small group support for SEND/ LDD and vulnerable students in accessing appropriate career pathways.
The careers programme will be reviewed in June 2021
Career-O-Meter
The Careerometer widget can be used to research and compare key information about different occupations which can be useful when identifying potential careers of interest. It provides access to a variety of data including salary, hours of work and future employment prospects. Type in the occupation you are interested in and select the option most relevant to you.
Careers Lead and Work Experience Co-ordinator: Nicola Dickinson
The Careers Advisor can be contacted on 0121 553 4665 ext 5245
Email: [email protected]
The Careers Advisor can also be contacted via Kudos and is also available in school in the Post 16 office or Library.
Careers Lead: Bill Elgar - Tel: 0121 553 4665
Email: [email protected]
Governor for Careers: TBC
Connexions PA: Alison Danks
- Careers Education Information Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) from Years 7-13. This is mainly through one to one appointments, whole group guidance during PSHE days and information evenings. Students can discuss anything related to careers and information is also given about finances and the implication of this on them i.e. student loans. It also touches on their emotional wellbeing and how they cope with pressures at school and home.
- An individualised action plan is used to track student progress. This is also shared with parents.
- As part of Personal Social Health Education (PSHE) days students have a spiral of CEIAG opportunities which include employer encounters, information on further and higher education, apprenticeships, employability skills, how to complete applications and how best to present at interview. These tools equip students to make well informed choices about their future options.
- We try to maximise our links with parents and guardians through Parents Evenings or one to one appointments. We also offer access to Kudos Software on our Website so that parents can use this with their child at home and explore careers, courses and Labour Market Information (LMI). Through this, parents and students can contact the Careers Advisor to make appointments or ask questions.
- Ensuring they get the best possible Work Experience as part of their Year 10 experience. Our Careers Advisor has created strong links with a wide range of local employers ranging from retail to construction. Students who cannot organise their own work placements are supported with applications to these local contacts. All students are visited during the course of the placement and log books are checked to ensure they have adhered to the expected standards.
- Work placement support is also provided for Post 16 students studying Health and Social Care and Childcare.
- Providing individualised Advice and Guidance for all Year 11 and 13 students.
- A Careers Hub in the library so that students have a central place to meet the Careers Advisor and have access to careers resources.
- Small group support for SEND/ LDD and vulnerable students in accessing appropriate career pathways.
The school measures and assesses the impact of the careers program through its NEETs (Not in Education, Employment or Training) figures.
Aspire to HE is a partnership funded through the National Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOP) and led by The University of Wolverhampton to supports the government’s goal to increase the number of disadvantaged young people entering higher education by 2020. NCOP supports 29 consortia across the country to work with young people from targeted postcodes. Aspire to HE covers the areas of Sandwell and Dudley, Walsall and Wolverhampton, and Telford and Wrekin.
Black Country Chambers of Commerce- The Young Chamber Committee consists of seven secondary schools with student body representatives that voice the issues and opinions of their whole school body.
The Committee was set up to be a link between schools and businesses, a platform for both parties to interact on mutual ground.
Our Young Chamber supports the development and growth of young people and will enable us to support the creation of future leaders.
The mission of Connexions Sandwell is to positively engage Sandwell young people and provide them with high quality independent careers advice and guidance which enables them to take up work, an apprenticeship or a further learning opportunity in order to fulfil their potential. Through multi-agency working, Connexions provides high-quality, impartial, information, advice and guidance (including careers advice and guidance), together with access to personal-development opportunities to help remove barriers to learning and progression and ensure young people make a smooth transition to adulthood and working life.
The school measures and assesses the impact of the careers program through its NEETs (Not in Education, Employment or Training) figures.
Icould is a small, dynamic charity, providing career inspiration and information for young people. We show what is possible in work and offer different ways to think about careers through free access to over 1000 personal video stories, detailed job information, plus practical tips, insight and advice.
Since the launch in 2009, they have developed a reputation for quality content and strong partnership working. icould is funded by a combination of philanthropy, sponsorship, and grants from trusts and foundations, and receives further support through a range of in-kind services.
Future Finder features 430 different jobs and draws on a variety of labour market data feeds from credible sources such as UCAS, UKCES and the Russell Group.
Designed for teenagers, Future Finder connects today’s A Level choices with tomorrow’s careers.
It shows which jobs are growing and which A Level choices can earn the most money. It helps to understand how what is learned in the classroom is relevant to the outside world.
The National Careers Service provides information, advice and guidance across England to help make decisions on learning, training and work. We've got over 800 job profiles describing what each job entails. The service offers confidential and impartial advice and is supported by qualified careers advisers.
Registration is free and only takes a few minutes. You'll need to be aged 13 or over to open an account.
Lifeskills created with Barclays, has one single-minded ambition – to inspire young people to get the skills they need for a better future. And that’s what they do. Not just online, but in class and through valuable real-world experiences.
"Three quarters of young people who engage with LifeSkills feel more confident to make decisions about their future while 69% feel motivated to do better at school." Kirstie Mackey, LifeSkills Team. (Online survey conducted by The Work Foundation, 2015)
Kudos is the leading career development service helping you to explore, develop and maximise your potential.
Designed for students aged 13-19, Kudos takes students on a journey of discovery where they explore their potential through a personalised experience based on their interests and aspirations. Students will discover new ideas, understand which careers best suit them and uncover how what they are learning in school links to future opportunities and their career destination.
The Russell Group is relaunching its guide for Year 10 and 11 pupils on subject choice to study at sixth form or college and how it relates to their future study and careers.
| Gatsby Benchmark | # | GSA Careers Activities |
| A stable careers programme | 1 | PSHE/Curriculum/One to one CEIAG |
| Learning from labour market information | 2 | Assemblies/Website/PHSE |
| Addressing the needs of each pupil | 3 | One to one CEIAG meetings/Connexions |
| Linking curriculum learning to careers | 4 | Curriculum and careers/STEM |
| Encounters with employers and employees | 5 | Employer talks/Assemblies |
| Experiences of workplaces | 6 | Work experience/Work place visits |
| Encounters with further and higher Education | 7 | Assemblies/Careers fairs/FE visits |
| Personal guidance | 8 | One to one CEIAG meetings/Connexions |