Careers and Higher Education
Planning for life beyond Chigwell
At Chigwell, we ensure that all students have access to impartial careers advice to help them make informed, independent choices about their future after leaving school; whether that be Higher Education, a degree apprenticeship or other work-based training, or employment.
Our careers programme follows the eight Gatsby Benchmarks.
Careers Stages
Year 7 – Dedicated careers session in PHSE
Year 8 – Dedicated careers sessions in PHSE
Year 9 – Talk by Head of Sixth Form ‘Where are you heading?’; advice on GCSE choices; Careers Convention
Year 10 – Talk by QMU regarding A Level and degree choices, Careers Convention, invitations to relevant guest speakers.
Year 11 – Advice on A Level choices, Options evening, Careers interviews/discussions, sign up to Unifrog, Careers Convention, A Level taster day, talk by QMU regarding A Level and degree choices, Medic talk, Law talk, invitation to relevant guest speakers, Sixth Form Open Evening.
Year 12 – UCAS fair, Sixth Form transition talk, Unifrog university shortlists, UCAS Options evening, Careers Convention, Oxbridge trip, UCAS applications start, medic talk, law talk, ASK Apprenticeship assembly.
Year 13 – UCAS applications & submission advice, Mock Medical Interview Evening, Careers Convention.
Talks and Competitions
Alongside these year-specific careers activities, there are regular talks and competitions which are open to students across the School. These include the Williams Project (a fortnightly speaker society designed to give Chigwell pupils and staff the chance to learn from experts, outside the classroom and in an informal environment), the Howard and Mitchell Essay Competition and the ‘Meet the Future’ talks given by Old Chigwellians.
Careers Week
2021
This year we ran our annual Careers Convention online! Running in conjunction with National Careers Week, we hosted a whole week of sessions, in which students from Year 10 - 13 had the chance to talk to representatives from a variety of employment areas and higher education.
The annual event, which has been running for a number of years, has grown bigger every year. This year, there were talks from Higher Education institutions and providers including Queen Mary University, Stirling University and AIM Apprenticeships. They spoke to students about their choices and options after A Levels and beyond. We also had a very good mixture of regular and new volunteers and alumni from local and national businesses sharing their knowledge and experience.
Head of Careers
Our dedicated Head of Careers is based in the Sixth Form Centre and is available for students to talk to at any time. All students are introduced to the Unifrog online packaged to help them research their 18+ plans from Year 12 onwards.
Oxbridge and Medicine Applicants
We run a specialised programme for students interested in studying medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine. This programme is open to all students from any year group with an interest in studying these areas. They are invited along for talks and mock interviews, as well as practicing skills like the Multi Mini Interview (MMI), which is now being widely used by medical schools in their selection processes.
For those students who are potential Oxbridge applicants, the Assistant Head of Sixth Form, Charlotte Nairac, hosts support groups and arranges appointments with subject specialist teachers.
Destinations
Our careers guidance can be measured by the pathways our students take after leaving our Sixth Form. Please see more in the table below.
Relevant News & Blog
14 April 2021
Meet the Future; Applied Psychology
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09 April 2021
Business & Accounting Competition Sharpens Students' Employability Skills
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09 April 2021
National Apprenticeships Week 2021
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09 April 2021
National Careers Week 2021
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18 December 2020
Howard and Mitchell Essay Winners 2020
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18 December 2020
Inspiring the future generation into the world of STEAM
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18 December 2020
Headmaster's Blog: Public Exams 2020
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