7th July 2015
St Brendan’s Sixth Form College encouraged their students to think about their futures this week as they hosted their annual Future Planning Week.
In a drive to encourage their 16-18 year old students to explore the endless exciting opportunities available to them after leaving college, St Brendan’s played host to multiple engaging events which invited alumni, guest speakers and business representatives to inspire and inform the post-16 pupils.
As the only Sixth Form College in the South West, St Brendan’s provides its 1,700 students with a diverse range of courses which can be combined in any fashion to create a bespoke timetable to them. As a result, the college is home to many students with fascinating and unique career ambitions, which St Brendan’s aims to nurture. Future Planning Week is a chance for first year pupils to really think about their options, and ask all the questions they need to before their summer break; where they are encouraged to research their options further.
The week began with Employability day, which saw alumni members, university lecturers and business representatives visit the campus to hold sessions discussing their experiences after further education and the options that are available to students. One group of lucky Science Technology, Engineering and Maths students had an interesting Skype discussion with European Space Agency ambassadors. Meanwhile, a biology group comprising of medicine, dentistry and veterinary science aspirants, tested their manual dexterity skills through dissecting insects! For many students, the day resulted in realisation of the diverse opportunities that are open to them, with many being influenced by what they experienced throughout the day.
As part of the week, business representatives were also invited in to carry out mock interviews. From Civil Service Engineers and Aerospace employees, to the Police, Ministry of Defence and Multi-media business owners, the large theatre was full with students gaining valuable interview experience. With the majority of St Brendan’s first year students going on to higher education, apprenticeships and employment next year, the advice, experience and guidance learnt throughout the week was hugely useful.
Said student Betheny Stephens: “I found the week hugely helpful and informative. The talks on Joint Honours Degrees at University were especially valuable for me, as I’m planning on going on to study Drama and Education after St Brendan’s. The whole week encouraged me to be even more excited about my future!”
