Year 13 Progression Event

Beacon Academy Sixth Form students preparing to progress into the world of work and higher education gained valuable insight from training providers and local employers at a special UCAS, Apprenticeships and Careers Day for Year 13 students on Friday 15 November.

As part of the structured work-related learning programme at Beacon Academy, this event provides students preparing to progress to university, apprenticeships or employment with the opportunity to take part in practical, interactive sessions designed to support them with taking their next steps.

All students attended a session led by local independent financial advisors, Prosperity IFA, designed to introduce the students to the field of financial services and the importance of financial planning and budgeting. Working in teams, the students enjoyed competing in a game of Discover Fortunes, which encouraged students to practice their problem-solving skills whilst learning about different financial profiles and risk categories.

The students applying for university or apprenticeships were given independent time to work on applications, personal statements, apprenticeship searches or CV writing. UCAS students attended a session covering choosing courses and universities, accepting offers, results day and clearing. Oxbridge applicants and students that had submitted early UCAS applications for Medicine or Veterinary Science sat mock interviews with Head of Sixth Form, Mr Howarth, and KS5 UCAS and Enrichment Lead, Miss Akehurst. The interviews were designed to replicate the real experience and were tailored to each student’s application.

“Today’s been helpful,” said Year 13 student, Tilly, “Especially the mock university interview and learning when to apply for student finance. I’m an early applicant as I’m applying for Veterinary Science or Biochemistry at Bristol, Liverpool or Cambridge, so I’ve done lots already for my UCAS application with Mr Howarth and have received some offers. I’ve had loads of one-to-one support to get my application and my personal statement right. Everyone’s application is very different.”

“I’m applying to study Economics and Management at Oxford,” said Year 13 student, Nat, “The interview today and the feedback afterwards has helped me to understand what I need to prepare for.”

Year 13 student, Leo, said, “I’m applying to do Veterinary Science. I realised in Year 9 that I want to be a vet. It’s given me the motivation to get through school. Mr Howarth has been really helpful, booking meetings and helping me to get my application and personal statement done in time. I wanted Mr Howarth to push me so that my application could be the best it could possibly be.”

Students exploring apprenticeship opportunities were provided with guidance to help them navigate the search and application process, from registering and researching to interviews and accepting a job offer. This included advising the students on how to match themselves to a job description and demonstrate their key strengths and employability skills.

Students applying for apprenticeships prepared CVs and took part in mock interviews conducted by local employers. Seven members of the Crowborough and District Chamber of Commerce attended to conduct mock interviews with students and were able to provide constructive feedback. Beacon Academy would like to thank all chamber members that supported the event: Matt Ketley and Levi Bonnet of Prosperity IFA, Carolyn Markham of North Star Creative Marketing, Katrina Walker of Pure Moments in Time, Vanessa Errington of Posture & Spine, Sally Casterton, Business Finance Coach at Garner Financial Solutions and Kevin Crook of Crowborough Wildlife Group.

“I’m interested in Criminology or policing,” said Year 13 student, Millie , “My interviewer gave me some good advice about preparing for interviews and suggested a few place I could apply. Today was my first interview, so it a really helpful experience.”

Sixth Form student, Aayan, said, “They asked some good questions. It has helped me to know what to expect.”

Careers Advisor and Assistant Head of Years 12 and 13, Mr Williams, said, “Apprenticeships are becoming an increasingly attractive option for students and can offer an appealing route to employment linked with a degree. In recent years, a growing proportion of our students have progressed to prestigious apprenticeships both within the local area and further afield.”

Mr Howarth, Assistant Headteacher at Beacon Academy Sixth Form, extended thanks to the wide range of external visitors that contributed to the event’s success, commenting, “We really value all of the different kinds of progression routes our students seek and so getting a good mixture of employment, apprenticeship and university support for this event is really important to us. The positive responses from our students and our visitors suggest that we are getting this right. We would like to thank all professionals, business owners and training providers that contributed to this year’s event.”