Progression guidance
Our students follow a programme to help them to explore university options, apprenticeships and career possibilities.
We pride ourselves on how well we know our students and this helps us to tailor our support for each individual . One to one support and guidance is available before, during and after school; the sixth form office is always open and students are welcome to drop in to speak about their options with any of the head of year team.
Throughout the year, Form Tutors and assemblies seek to raise awareness of the different possibilities that lie ahead for students. 1-to-1 Individual advice about apprenticeship applications, UCAS personal statements, CVs and interview preparation is offered to all sixth form students.
The Sixth Form have access to this impressive online resource, which provides an array of careers, apprenticeship and university option information. Unifrog is a one-stop-shop for careers; students are encouraged to regularly access this engaging, impartial and user-friendly platform to help them make the best choices and submit top quality applications. Unifrog also provides information about applications throughout the world, special opportunities (including funding opportunities) and a wide range of enrichment tools to help students understand how to be the best applicant for any career.
There is a regular Sixth Form Careers bulletin which raises awareness of latest information such as: labour market information; job stats; Good University Guide information; spotlights on different options and links to information recently received by school about courses; webinars; online support and specific information for students interested in various careers.
Throughout the Sixth Form, we arrange a number of opportunities for students to meet experts in a range of fields and discuss career paths with former students. The exact programme of events will vary year to year but recent sessions include: Studying at Lancaster University; apprenticeships at Scottish Power; applying for Oxford and Cambridge; setting up a LinkedIn profile
The Sixth Form team actively encourage students to take virtual college or university tours or, better still, to visit college or university open days and allows students up to 3 days of absence to make such visits, often with prior advice about what to look out for, what to find out, so that the visit is specific and productive. We also take all year 12 students to the annual UCAS Exhibition to explore the many different universities available.
We have a dedicated Oxbridge Society to support students exploring applying to these universities. The sessions include information on the universities, super-curricular activities they can be engaging in but also discussions on a whole range of issues to help develop their critical thinking and communication skills. We also organise information sessions from the universities themselves.
We also have a dedicated Medicine Society for potential medicine and dentistry applicants. The group look into all the requirements for such applications such as work experience, admissions tests and interviews. We also provide mock interview experiences for our students, for both the MMIs (multiple mini interviews) and the formal interview.
If you are not interested in full time study at university after A Levels you are not alone. The value attached to apprenticeships, and students who wish to consider them, is equal in every way to that for students who wish to apply to university. Over 10% of students in the Sixth Form apply for apprenticeships, mainly at degree apprenticeship level, and students can access and receive at least as much support as do students applying for university courses. This help and support will always be individualised as the support needed will depend on the individual and the apprenticeships they are interested in applying for.
We also provide students with important mock interview experience, with all year 12 students receiving a mock interview from a member of the local Rotary Club. In year 13, we also provide mock interviews for Oxbridge and Medicine applicants (including MMIs) and any other student who requires an interview for a university or apprenticeship application.
We dedicate our Activities Week in year 12 to supporting our students making post-18 applications. Recent Activities Weeks have included some of the following sessions and activities:
- Meet and greet with a range of professionals
- Personal Statement writing workshops
- ‘Applying for Law’ workshops
- Mock interviews
- Employability skills competition
We also make sure the week has some other activities including trips to Alton Towers, Liverpool and Chester.
