- Introduction – Welcome to your virtual careers programme!
Using a mixture of existing online resources, we will give you the opportunity to work through the job application cycle. From self-analysis and identifying your key skills and attributes to planning your CV and application form, to taking part in a virtual mock interview and learning about other selection methods that employers use. You will even follow a virtual work experience session.
Most of the content will be delivered through Barclays Life Skills website (you will need to register to use the website and access each session). The attached booklet should support those online sessions and is intended to help you to work through each stage. Look out for the hyperlinks throughout to bring you straight to each online session. Please take notes and complete each workbook section thoroughly. You will be expected to bring your completed booklet and CV to school in September – so don’t lose it!
We have chosen the content carefully and tried to make sure that everything is relevant to get you work ready! Good Luck!
- Getting to Know You – This is an opportunity for self-analysis and discovery. What makes you tick? What are your key strengths and attributes? What sort of a person are you? There is some room in the booklet for self-discovery and to help you through the following sessions:
- Interactive wheel of skills – job matching tool
- The dictionary of skills, explore the skills employers want
- Focus on listening and problem-solving skills
- Personal SWOT Analysis (booklet only)
- Marketing your self – Make a great first impression with a first-class CV and make your application stand out from others.
- Key things to think about when writing a CV – do’s and don’t’s (booklet)
- Play the Boss
- Build your own CV
- Writing a covering letter
- Interview and Selection – You’ve got the interview so now it’s time to do some preparation. Find out about all the selection techniques that employers use. Have a go at some virtual interview questions and find out how Covid-19 has affected the selection process by making the focus online.
- Preparing for Interview
- Barclays Life Skills Mock interview
- Other aspects of selection – interview types, skills testing and assessment centres
- Virtual Work Experience – You have been through the selection process and have managed to secure some virtual work experience. Meet the employees of Freeformers and discover what their jobs involve and what paths took them to their current role. Look out for all the tips on how you can make a good impression in your work experience (or when you start a new job for that matter!).
- Personal Finance – You will all be starting your careers in the next few years and will start earning money every year. Many of you will move away from home and start living independently so you will have to start thinking more carefully about how to manage your finances – think about budgets and maybe also plan for savings and investments. It is important that you have some financial understanding so that you can make your money go further and work hard for you!