Abingdon News No. 52

10 January 2020 A career guidance counsellor gives guidance based on the client’s particular needs. In a secondary school context, this means, among other things, helping pupils to choose GCSE or A-Level subjects taking into account career planning considerations. When a pupil enters the Sixth Form, needs shift to answering the question, “What should I do after I leave school?” Given that the occupations on the short list of most Abingdon School sixth formers require a degree, and given the often irresistible appeal of university life, it’s no surprise that 95% of each year’s leavers go to university (either directly or after taking a gap year). Other pupils, however, are eyeing occupations that can be pursued without a degree, perhaps because they are not keen to study full-time for another three or four years or are reluctant to take on student debt. Others want to study and work at the same time, building valued employability skills and work experience. However relatively few sixth formers seriously consider alternatives to full-time university study. Why? There can be several reasons, but one is the difficulty in choosing a route that few – if any others – are choosing, even if that route makes sense; it’s just a lot easier (and less risky) to follow the well-trodden path. Michael Triff, Head of Career Guidance 1. Options to continue education that lead either to work or to university This includes a Higher National Certificate (HNC) or Diploma (HND). HNCs and HNDs are work-related vocational qualifications linked to a particular occupation and are typically provided by further education colleges. Both can be used to find an entry-level job in a chosen occupation or to continue to study towards a related Foundation Degree and eventually a related full Honours Degree. 2. Options to continue education that lead to work This includes National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs), which are vocational qualifications designed to confer either specific, practical skills needed for a particular occupation, or general skills suitable to a variety of occupations. NVQs can be taken as a student at a further education college, but are most commonly taken while working in a job or as part of an apprenticeship. 3. Options to work and continue education at the same time This includes apprenticeships (and School Leaver Programmes, which are similar). Apprenticeships are real, paid jobs for between one and six years, depending upon the level of apprenticeship and the industry sector. All apprenticeships provide vocation-based workplace training that employers hope apprentices will use to gain a formal qualification (or several) via continuing education, either at a college, university, or online (e-learning). At the end of an apprenticeship, an apprentice may be offered a job (permanent or fixed term), which s/he may or may not be obliged to accept. Looking for an alternative to university? So what are these alternatives? For more information, ask your son to download a guide called ‘ Alternatives to University - At Least For Now ’. (from the Career Guidance section of the pupil intranet, Firefly)