The Quality in Careers Standard is a dedicated national quality award and is strongly recommended by the Department of Education to form part of all state-funded further education colleges’ careers strategies. To be awarded with the accreditation the college had to meet standards set by charitable foundation Gatsby for ‘Good Career Advice’, which outlines eight benchmarks for world class careers provision in education. The college was measured against these across the four components of CEIAG – careers education, careers information, careers advice and careers guidance.
The college’s enthusiastic careers team run an annual programme, working with students throughout their time at college to improve their understanding, awareness and knowledge through hands-on practical experience of their chosen industry. Students also work with industry experienced tutors who develop their skills to provide them with the insight and capability they require to be successful in their chosen career path. Furthermore, they have the opportunity to work directly with potential employers gaining invaluable and practical first-hand industry experience.
Careers Coordinator, Amanda Millson said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this benchmark in outstanding careers provision. It’s a testament to the hard-work, dedication, and enthusiasm of the team in combination with the vocational nature of our courses and the industry expertise of our teaching staff. All of these factors contribute to a robust and effective careers programme that enhances the student’s understanding of employability and develops new and existing skills to give them the edge when competing for jobs, higher education places or apprenticeships.”
This rounded approach, designed to develop students into highly employable and valuable candidates for future opportunities was praised by the Quality in Careers Standard assessing body. In particular the strength, quality and breadth of the college’s careers provision and the excellent initiatives in place received specific mention.
Whilst delighted by the award of this nationally recognised accreditation, the team at Riseholme are not resting on their laurels but focused on how they can continue to further improve their service. The college has plans to expand the careers team, to increase their capacity and develop the alumni network to inspire with former students’ success.
A further key element of the careers provision will be the continued use of digital careers platform Unifrog which is an online resource all students can access. This fantastic resource includes interactive quizzes, over 1,000 careers profiles and online resources, advice and guides across a number of careers related subjects such as CV writing and making applications to university or apprenticeships.
