I’m a National Careers Service Adviser – Ask Me Anything

OP

We will have expert adviser Tom live on TSR tonight from 6pm until 9pm.

Leave your questions for him here, or get in touch when he is live for support with careers, education, employment, training and apprenticeships.

Thanks!!!

Reply 63

priyankab

5

Original post by National Careers Service

We will have expert adviser Tom live on TSR tonight from 6pm until 9pm.

Leave your questions for him here, or get in touch when he is live for support with careers, education, employment, training and apprenticeships.

Thanks!!!

What are the benefits of doing politics & government alevel?

Reply 64

priyankab

5

Original post by National Careers Service

Hi there,

I hope you were able to join out live broadcast over on Facebook for answers to some of your questions above, I am going to tag in @National Apprenticeship Service to see if they can offer further support on the specific apprenticeship questions that you have ask.

Thanks - Sophie.

It’s been quite a while and I still haven’t got a reply from @National Apprenticeship Service I was wondering if you could answer it here.

Reply 65

OP

Original post by priyankab

What are the benefits of doing politics & government alevel?

Hi,

Thanks for your question!

A-Level’s can be the first time that you really get to shape your education to your interests, strengths and future ambitions.
While you do choose particular subjects at GCSE, A-Levels offer the opportunity to specialise even further, particularly if you have a career in mind!

However, lots of students might be in a position where they don’t know which subjects will be best for their career or maybe unsure as to what career they want to get into in the future!

For these students, it’s a good idea to choose a combination of subjects which you enjoy, and that can be used to get into a number of different careers in the future!

Politics & Government can be an excellent choice as it’s a subject which is seen as ‘academically sound’ – this basically means subjects which rely on studying and reasoning rather than practical or technical skills.

This means that it can be accepted for a number of different university or higher education courses as it shows you’re unlikely to struggle with the type of learning you would be expected to do at a higher level.

If you were interested in finding out a bit more information about the type of jobs and careers which Politics can lead into, I would recommend having a look at the Prospects website which I’ve linked to below:

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/what-can-i-do-with-my-degree/politics

I would also recommend speaking with one of our advisers as they can provide further details about choosing your options in the future – you can find links to our contact methods on the link below:

http://bit.ly/2GkrcXU

I hope this helps as a starting point!

Thanks and good luck!

Tom.

Reply 66

OP

Original post by priyankab

It’s been quite a while and I still haven’t got a reply from @National Apprenticeship Service I was wondering if you could answer it here.

Hi,

Thanks for getting in touch.

As a starting point, I would certainly recommend having a look at the Civil Service website which can outline a little bit more about the different apprenticeship and career routes can hopefully provide a bit more of a foundation:

https://www.faststream.gov.uk/

https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/ways-to-join/

https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/departments/

However, from the information in the below website, it appears Fast Track Apprenticeship will not be open for applications in 2019.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/no-fast-track-application-window-in-2019

Tom.

Reply 67

Lils2003

10

How can you get ahead of competition in medicine apart from taking part in work experience etc?

Reply 68

OP

Original post by Lils2003

How can you get ahead of competition in medicine apart from taking part in work experience etc?

Hi,

Thanks for your post!

Medicine can be a very competitive field so it’s great you’re looking for some advice about making yourself stand out!

Work experience is a very useful thing to have when applying for medical qualification but it’s not the only thing which will help your applications.

One thing which you can certainly do while you are studying is to make sure you are taking a variety of extra curriculum activities, especially those which allow you to build on leadership qualities. As a medical professional in the future, you are very likely to need to demonstrate leadership abilities in pressure situations and any examples of this which you can get while you are at school will certainly be a positive.

Schools are likely to be running a variety of different clubs and societies which you can use to build these skills but if you really wanted to challenge yourself, why not attempt to set up your own society? This will perfectly demonstrate your ambition, leadership and organisations skills – all skills which will be vital in medicine.

I hope this helps to begin with but feel free to get back in touch if you have any more questions!

Good luck!

Tom.

Reply 69

username2998742

22

Maybe kind of a childish question lol, but is working in a coffee shop as fun as it seems?

Reply 70

OP

Original post by HowToBeABlobfish

Maybe kind of a childish question lol, but is working in a coffee shop as fun as it seems?

Hi there,

I don't think this is a childish question at all!

What one person see's as fun can be another person's idea of their worst job!

Most jobs have elements that you enjoy and some that you don't, working in a coffee shop will involve working with a lot of customers and as part of a strong team. You may work unsociable hours and go through very busy times of day. It's likely you will be responsible for some element of cleaning and may even deal with some difficult customers from time to time.

Sometimes what makes the job so much fun is the people you work with!

You can find out more about what it takes to be a barista here - https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/job-profiles/barista

I hope this helps!

Sophie.

Reply 71

heretochat

7

I want to get in touch with other health psychologists in Scotland, to talk about careers and see if there is anything I can do to gain experience- how do I do this?

Reply 72

OP

We are live now on TSR until 9pm! If you have any questions regarding careers, education or employment- ask us here.

Original post by National Careers Service

If you have questions about careers, education, employment, training or apprenticeships - ask here and a National Careers Service expert adviser will get back to you.

Reply 73

Suppose you're working on a Temp basis (thru a recruiter) for a client, and then the client likes you and encourages you to apply for an internal role, the Perm version of your role basically, and then after interviewing verbal offer made by your line manager (over the phone) and you accept it too (over the phone). You then get a bunch of forms to fill - HMRC Starter Checklist, Health Questionnaire, Employee Details form, Code of Conduct form, References Request form, some Pension form and another firm confirming things like contract type, hours, salary, annual leave, etc (but no notice period). Now, the last form said I'll be issued with a Contract of Employment, but I've not yet got one. Also, assuming the last form actually was the offer letter (??? don't think so, as my previous 3 jobs required my signature on the offer letter/employment contract), it didn't actually ask me for my signature, and since I didn't even yet get a contract to sign (so I guess no formal offer accepted ?), can it not be said dat actually I've not yet started the Perm role ? Thanks.

Reply 74

OP

Hi, thanks for posting...it's difficult for us to answer this. I would advise that you speak to your employer, if you have started your permanent role with them they will be able to confirm this.

I hope this helps, please get back in touch if there is anything else that we can help you with!

Samrita.

Original post by Anonymous370

Suppose you're working on a Temp basis (thru a recruiter) for a client, and then the client likes you and encourages you to apply for an internal role, the Perm version of your role basically, and then after interviewing verbal offer made by your line manager (over the phone) and you accept it too (over the phone). You then get a bunch of forms to fill - HMRC Starter Checklist, Health Questionnaire, Employee Details form, Code of Conduct form, References Request form, some Pension form and another firm confirming things like contract type, hours, salary, annual leave, etc (but no notice period). Now, the last form said I'll be issued with a Contract of Employment, but I've not yet got one. Also, assuming the last form actually was the offer letter (??? don't think so, as my previous 3 jobs required my signature on the offer letter/employment contract), it didn't actually ask me for my signature, and since I didn't even yet get a contract to sign (so I guess no formal offer accepted ?), can it not be said dat actually I've not yet started the Perm role ? Thanks.

(edited 5 years ago)

Reply 75

Original post by National Careers Service

Hi, thanks for posting...it's difficult for us to answer this. I would advise that you speak to your employer, if you have started your permanent role with them they will be able to confirm this.

I hope this helps, please get back in touch if there is anything else that we can help you with!

Samrita.

OK thanks. Another q, when I get shown at Work how to do something e.g. produce a report, as I was shown a number of times in a previous role as a Reporting Analyst, then of course you need to make notes on how to get the task done for future reference/learning it, but they can be messy, too rushed if you see what I mean and incomplete. Any suggestions? Sorry if it's a silly question. Thanks.

Reply 76

OP

You’re welcome. I’m unsure of what your question is here…are you able to clarify and explain your further so that I can understand fully how to advise you.

Thanks!

Samrita.

Original post by Anonymous370

OK thanks. Another q, when I get shown at Work how to do something e.g. produce a report, as I was shown a number of times in a previous role as a Reporting Analyst, then of course you need to make notes on how to get the task done for future reference/learning it, but they can be messy, too rushed if you see what I mean and incomplete. Any suggestions? Sorry if it's a silly question. Thanks.

Reply 77

Original post by National Careers Service

You’re welcome. I’m unsure of what your question is here…are you able to clarify and explain your further so that I can understand fully how to advise you.

Thanks!

Samrita.

Sure. In the workplace, you commonly get shown how to get something done, like say producing a report, with a number of intructions carried out by the person showing it to you. Any sggestions for "capturing" it all and well? There are difficulties, like the speed they go out makes you naturally take insufficient/incomplete notes, the notes you make are too messy to read etc. Hope you see what I mean here. Sorry if this is a silly q. Thanks.

Reply 78

How late can you apply to Graudate schemes ? Would 3 years and more (from graduation) be unacceptable ? Thanks

Reply 79

OP