Advise me please

I recently completed my A levels and am taking a gap year, hoping to make the most of this time by being as productive as possible. After some research, I found that I might be eligible for courses like RFQs and NVQs, and I’m open to pursuing any that could benefit my future career. I've previously completed a Level 2 qualification in mental health, but I didn’t feel it significantly improved my job prospects. Could you please advise me on which sectors or qualifications might be most beneficial for my future career? I plan to attend university, but I also want to enhance my CV and improve my chances of securing a job.

Thanks :smile:

Reply 1

LIBF

Original post by sum.ai

Hello!

Love that you're trying to do as much as you can to improve prospects for yourself.

I think maybe you need to ask yourself what kind of area you'd like to go into first and then decide from there. Do you have a future career in mind? Is there a specific course would you like to study at University? and if no, then what are your interests? What did you enjoy most at A-Levels? What are your motivations?

Then we can all help to advise you further on things you could possibly do to improve your prospects.

Alex - LIBF Rep 🙂

Reply 2

sum.ai

Original post by LIBF

Hello!
Love that you're trying to do as much as you can to improve prospects for yourself.
I think maybe you need to ask yourself what kind of area you'd like to go into first and then decide from there. Do you have a future career in mind? Is there a specific course would you like to study at University? and if no, then what are your interests? What did you enjoy most at A-Levels? What are your motivations?
Then we can all help to advise you further on things you could possibly do to improve your prospects.
Alex - LIBF Rep 🙂

Hi Alex,

Thanks for the reply,

During my A-levels, I really enjoyed studying history and religious studies, but I decided to go into law at uni. Before starting, I wanted to take a gap year to gain more experiences and expand my knowledge in all industries, just so I could have a head start in my career. I’m interested in law-related courses, but I don't think there are many courses available. I’m open to trying new things, though.

I’ve done quite a bit of volunteering with children and the public, which I really enjoyed. However, I feel like I’m lacking in certain areas, like leadership, business, and customer service skills. That’s why I’m considering doing something in those fields, even though it’s not directly related to the subjects I’m most passionate about. Is volunteering enough for me to work in fields that require childcare? Or do I have to do a course related to this field.

I also read up on NVQs and RQFs, but I didn’t quite understand the difference between them. Could you explain which one might be more beneficial? Also, when it coms to employment would a Level 3 differ massively from a Level 2 qualification?

Lastly, I’ve been looking at courses on business, entrepreneurship, and accounting and was wondering how useful they actually are career-wise. Would they help me get a part-time job as a uni student, or would a leadership and management course be better?

Thanks for your help, and sorry for all the questions!

Reply 3

LIBF

Original post by sum.ai

Hi Alex,
Thanks for the reply,
During my A-levels, I really enjoyed studying history and religious studies, but I decided to go into law at uni. Before starting, I wanted to take a gap year to gain more experiences and expand my knowledge in all industries, just so I could have a head start in my career. I’m interested in law-related courses, but I don't think there are many courses available. I’m open to trying new things, though.
I’ve done quite a bit of volunteering with children and the public, which I really enjoyed. However, I feel like I’m lacking in certain areas, like leadership, business, and customer service skills. That’s why I’m considering doing something in those fields, even though it’s not directly related to the subjects I’m most passionate about. Is volunteering enough for me to work in fields that require childcare? Or do I have to do a course related to this field.
I also read up on NVQs and RQFs, but I didn’t quite understand the difference between them. Could you explain which one might be more beneficial? Also, when it coms to employment would a Level 3 differ massively from a Level 2 qualification?
Lastly, I’ve been looking at courses on business, entrepreneurship, and accounting and was wondering how useful they actually are career-wise. Would they help me get a part-time job as a uni student, or would a leadership and management course be better?
Thanks for your help, and sorry for all the questions!

Hi! Sorry for the delay in reply, I was asking our careers team for any advice for you.

Knowing what you want to study is a great start! I think that probably in your gap year, work experience is the best route to go to get transferable skills that relate to your course. If I was you this is what I'd look at:

First I'd go onto Prospects and search Law and see what comes up in terms of what you can do with a law degree and what skills are related.

I'd also have a look at The Forage - this was recommended by our careers team, and it looks amazing! They offer free digital internships for students. I'm not sure if they have any Law focused ones but might be worth a look! Or maybe if you're interested in a certain strain of Law like business, or real estate etc. you could focus on one of these types of topics to give you more understanding.

The Student Ladder is another option, they list loads of internships, grad roles or placements and gives advice on how to apply for them. From CV tips to interview advice.

Also it you're lacking in business/customer service skills, a good old fashioned retail job would help. You'd definitely get customer service skills and you can learn more about how that specific business operates. You get a multitude of transferable skills from retail or hospitality (i.e. café etc.) jobs!

I'm not sure about the courses you could take, I don't think they'd necessarily help you get a part-time job as a student, that's probably more down to experience which your volunteer roles provide. There are also websites like Skill Share where you can learn certain skills from others, they often do a free trial which is good! I think showing employers that you're proactive in learning and volunteer work etc. is good because it shows you're self motivated and dedicated.

I hope this helps you in some way! Sorry I couldn't help with the qualifications side of things, but you sound very motivated which is brilliant.

Alex - LIBF Rep 🙂