Careers Advice (Student Area)

Here you will find advice for the following areas. Click on the link to jump to that area.

 Advice for students post 16

• Facilities within school
• Careers Resources
• Who can I speak to?
• Options Choices Year 9
• Work Experience
• Studying at Thomas Adams Sixth Form
• Apprenticeships
• Vocational Training
• STEM Opportunities
• Learning Skills
• Careers Programme and Feedback
• Key Contacts

Facilities within School

When you begin to think about what you want to do in the future, it will feel scary! That is completely understandable. You are expected to stay in school until the year of your 16th birthday, then you have the option of deciding what you want to do next. You will have to stay in some form of education or training until you are 18. There are many different options, these include completing A-Levels at Thomas Adams Sixth Form, completing a college course, an apprenticeship, or vocational training.

The school is here to help you. In fact, by the time you read this, you have already likely attended numerous Careers Fairs, Assembly presentations and had lessons on Careers in school.

Careers Resources

As a school, we give you the opportunity to use the Careers software Xello. This is a powerful tool where you can explore different careers and how to access them.

In order to use Xello, follow this link which will allow you to log on using their school login information https://auth.xello.co.uk/SAML/Student/61bc869e-ef26-4ab9-9c42-7004e715d5a5. Once you have logged onto the system using this link, https://login.xello.co.uk/ you should be able to access the website using their normal school computer login credentials. 

You can find additional information within school, we have Careers related books in the school library which you can borrow to do your own research. We also have a host of information about different careers, college and university prospectuses to browse through in our Career Hub. You can also keep tabs on your progress within Careers Education by looking at your Careers Passport, available from your form tutor.

Who can I speak to?

The best person to speak to would be our Careers Adviser, Mrs Kim Weston kweston@thomasadams.net. She is available for Years 9 – 13 on Mondays, with drop-in sessions on Monday lunchtimes. We also offer the opportunity for your parents/carers to attend. Other people with a Careers overview in the school include Mr Hargreaves, Mrs Whitfield and Mr Allen, but you can always ask any member of staff about their career journey.

Options Choices – Year 9 

Section A : Core Studies

At Thomas Adams School we consider it essential that all of our students follow a broad, balanced curriculum throughout Key Stage 4. All students study a core curriculum of:-

GCSE courses in:

ENGLISH
MATHEMATICS
SCIENCE
The vast majority of students will also study (expectation for Set 1 and 2 students to take the qualification):-

FRENCH
as well as non-examination courses in:

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Section B : Pathway Choices

In addition, each student chooses further subjects from:

HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, COMPUTER SCIENCE, BUSINESS STUDIES (GCSE or CNAT), RELIGIOUS EDUCATION, ICT, DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY, FOOD, TEXTILES, ART or 3-D ART, DRAMA, MUSIC, BTEC SPORT, TRIPLE SCIENCE, PSYCHOLOGY, GRAPHICS, HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE

Process

You will be emailed a “Pathways Form” that you are to complete and submit with your choices. Depending upon your Key Stage 3 profile you will either receive a “Pathway A or Pathway B Form”.

Pathway A

Students that are in Sets 1 and 2 in French (and therefore eligible for the EBACC) are expected to select French along with:-

Either History or Geography
Select a further two choices in rank order along with two reserves.
We will strive to provide at least one of your top two choices (if not both)

Pathway B

Students that are not in Sets 1 and 2 in French follow a more technical pathway and are expected to:-

Select four choices (that includes French) in rank order along with two reserves.
We will strive to provide at least two of your top four choices (if not all).

Work Experience 

Thomas Adams School believes that Work Experience is a crucial moment of your education, giving you the opportunity to experience the world of work and start your journey towards your chosen career. If you have a good experience, it can help push you to work towards better grades so you can get your dream job!

Work Experience can help in the following ways:

• Some employers want to know if you have undertaken work experience and where.
• Work Experience provides you the opportunity to understand the world of work and if that sector is right for you.
• Will show you what you are good at and which skills you should work on.
• The Company may offer you a job! This happens every year!

More information on the benefits of Work Experience can be found here https://www.allaboutcareers.com/careers-advice/work-experience/why-is-work-experience-important

The school recommends you find and approach the placement yourself as you would getting a real job. Try not to be too nervous, often employers find your efforts a positive thing and will encourage you. If you can do this, you should be proud of yourself!

Practical information

Students will need to log onto the Grofar website and follow the instruction in the PowerPoint available in the documents section below. They will also need to complete a Health and Safety Form and hand that to Mrs Howells for Year 10 and Mrs Warr for Year 12.

Post 16 Options

Studying at Thomas Adams Sixth Form

Thomas Adams Sixth Form is a logical next step for you if you are considering A-Levels and we also offer some BTECs. We offer a continuation of the learning journey that you have experienced during your time with us. With a strong academic focus and pastoral focus, Thomas Adams Sixth Form offers the best of the school with the greater freedom that you, as young adults desire. You can view the sixth form prospectus here

What are A-Levels?

A-Levels (Advanced Levels) are the highest qualification you can study at secondary school and are often taught in Sixth Forms and Colleges. The study of A Levels lead to employment, training or higher education and many employers want you to have them and can help you get into  university.

We advise students take three A Levels, building upon what you have learnt during Year 11.

When choosing your A Levels, we recommend you consider the subjects you enjoy and what you are good at, as this will most likely lead to achieving the best grades. You should also consider the job you want and which subjects complement this, (Kudos can assist with this) and if you don’t know what you want to do, A Levels keep your options open. If students have already chosen a university and course, have a look at what A Levels they recommend, some discourage certain combinations.

For further information about the A Level and BTEC subjects available at Thomas Adams Sixth Form, please take a look at our subjects in more detail here.

Apprenticeships 

Thomas Adams School has an established history of exceeding the national average percentage of students who begin apprenticeships once they leave, these include placements at Rolls Royce and Jaguar LandRover.

You can choose from a variety of apprenticeships once you have completed A Levels.

It is important that you check the level of Apprenticeship you are considering. For A Level students we recommend either a Level 3 or 4 Apprenticeship. Level 3 is the equivalent of A Levels, Level 4 is seen as progression. Here are the breakdowns:

Advanced Apprenticeship (Level 3) To be accepted onto one of these, you will need 5 GCSE passes or a Level 2 Apprenticeship. Level 3 Apprenticeships are the equivalent of 2 A Level passes so would be considered the option for the majority of students post-16.

Higher Apprenticeship (Level 4 and above) To study a Level 4/5 Apprenticeship, your child will need to have studied an Advanced Apprenticeship or have A level qualifications. A Level 4 Apprenticeship is the equivalent of a foundation degree, which is two-thirds of a university degree.  Level 6 apprenticeships are available, these are the equivalent of a bachelors degree and Level 7 the equivalent of a masters degree.

For more information on Apprenticeships, please watch these videos from some of our Careers Fair delegates:

Vocational Training

Vocational courses are available at some further education providers. These are available at Level 1 to 3. Access to these courses are dependent on GCSE qualifications, however, for some trade qualifications Level 1 is where everyone starts. Some of these qualifications are the equivalent of 3 A Levels and others can lead to employment in that field. The most common form of Vocational Training course is a BTEC and there are 3 levels, at 16 you would be looking at BTEC Firsts or BTEC Nationals.

BTEC Firsts are level 2 qualifications and are equivalent to a GCSE.

BTEC Nationals are level 3 qualifications and are equivalent to A levels.

BTEC Higher Nationals are equivalent to the first year, or first and second year, of an undergraduate degree.

STEM Opportunities

STEM careers (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) is an expected area of growth in the UK over the next few years. There is an expected shortfall in the number of jobs and students following such a path. As such, the school wishes to promote these jobs. If you are interested in STEM opportunities within the school, please see Mr Gilbert.

Learning Skills 

There are several websites that can help you learn about your skills. These help you learn about what you are good at, but also skills that you may need to work on. These should help you consider which career paths that you may be suited to.

Just be warned, they are not perfect. Only you fully know how skilled you are at different things.

• https://icould.com/buzz-quiz/
• https://www.allaboutcareers.com/career-test
• https://www.prospects.ac.uk/planner

Careers Programme and Feedback

The school has a careers programme which it reviews every year during the Summer Term. Over your time at Thomas Adams you will start by learning about different jobs, to learning about what career path is right for you, to learning the skills you will need to apply, interview and achieve the career you desire. The document can be found here.

We also want to know what you think about our Careers Programme. We constantly review this, if you wish to provide us with feedback, please follow the survey link.

Each year we collect data where Year 11 and 13 want to go after they finish their studies and where they end up going. This is so we can see how effective our Careers Programme is.  For the latest data overview for Year 11 please see here and for a more in depth analysis click here For Year 13, please see here.