I began the year after my A-Levels doing an Art and Design foundation course at Lancaster and Morecambe College. Art was not something I particularly wanted to do at university as I never thought I would be able to go far in it career wise, so I decided to do the foundation as I wanted to gain further qualifications in something I love. All the way through sixth form, I did not really want to go to university; I was more interested in careers that did not need a degree, such as training to be an anatomical pathology technician or a veterinary nurse. A few months into my foundation, I had a massive change in direction. I really did not enjoy the course as it was very much modern art focused and although some aspect were extremely enjoyable, most of it did not appeal to me. So I decided to quit the course and gain some work experience. While I was looking for a job, I decided to look at what options I had with the A-Level results I had. I applied to do Audiology at several universities, as I had the time to really read up on the subject and decide it was the course for me as well as read several books related to the course.
I have really appreciated having this year out. It was nice to try the Art and Design course and meet new people and learn new things. However the work experience I have gained after I quit the course has been extremely useful. At one point I was working five jobs: a waitress, a barmaid, a shop assistant, cleaner and bank clinical support worker at Royal Lancaster Infirmary. This has made me a very adaptable potential employee for any part time work I may want to have at university. Eventually, once I felt I had gained enough experience from these jobs, I decided to focus on my bank clinical support work. Bank work is basically filling in for when wards are short staffed and clinical support work is basic patient care. I recommend that anyone who wants to go into healthcare should take some time out before university and gain paid work experience doing front line NHS work, if the jobs are available. The bank is a superb way of gaining work experience as you are moved round from ward to ward and the hours are flexible. Some days I am working on a general long stay ward for the elderly and other times I am on a more specific ward such as pre-op and post-op vascular wards. You learn so much on the job and it gives a brilliant insight into the structure and the workings of healthcare. All you have to do is create and NHS jobs account and keep checking to see if anything you are qualified for comes up. Even if you are not thinking of going into health care and have only taken a year out to do some work experience, I thoroughly recommend this as I have found this work the most rewarding out of all the many jobs I tried and it is also the most flexible, as you decide your hours. I hope this has been useful for anyone who really was not sure what to do after their A-Levels. I am living proof that changing your mind and being unsure of what do is not always a negative thing, as I have had a great year after my A-Levels.
Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Tuesday, 25 May 2010
Letters from 'Last year's Leavers'
It is always encouraging to hear from students after they have graduated from LGGS. I hope that you enjoy reading about thier experiences and find inspiration from what they say. (see below).
Miss Allen
Jenny Clemence (Architecture) May 2010
I leap from the door over a sea of cardboard and bolsa wood, narrowly missing the tubes of paint. A piece of wire mesh juts out from between the rolling waves of corrugated card, like a sharks fin. I land on my bed, the only clear space in the whole room; the chaotic result of architecture deadlines and barely any sleep over the last few days.
Those who tell you that architecture will involve staying up working late, not partying, are right, but it’s not all bad. It's a hectic combination of design work, tutorials, lectures, workshops, extra seminars and socialising-varied, stimulating, demanding but first and foremost, creative.
I have just had a design review for our final first year project: designing a house for a 'real' client - from the blank canvas of a site, through the brief, to finished design. Challenging but very enjoyable, this task was the culmination of a series of design projects, which have become increasingly complex over the year.
Lecture courses and workshops run parallel to our design work, with other assignments attached, often involving team work and sometimes being very hands on: visiting a quarry, sourcing stone, designing a place for conversation, and then building it on site in the town. For the last week of the project I practically became a stone - my hair matted with dust, my hands wrecked by hammering and chiselling!
This first year has been immense fun, and, although architects are known for working long hours, it is arguably one of the most sociable courses - due to the time you spend working and chatting together in the studio.
And it's definitely not all work! We've had a field trip to Newcastle, socials with the engineers/landscape students, a carnival themed fancy dress ball and much else besides.
If you are planning on studying architecture, I doubt you will regret it. I certainly don't.
Sarah Hobart (Gap Year) May 2010
My name is Sarah Hobart, and I used to go to LGGS. In Year 13, you will find yourself spending a lot of time looking at different universities, different courses – deciding what it is you want to do. The majority of people will know what they want to do. If you're like me, however, you might not have a clue, and that's okay!
All I knew in Year 13 was that I wanted to speak French, so with the help of Mrs Hopwood, Mrs Bettsworth and my form tutor I decided to take a year out. I knew that I wasn't ready to go to university just yet, so taking a year out was the best thing for me to do. I was so lucky that the French department received a poster advertising a gap year in France. After going on the website to find out a bit more, I sent off my application. I was invited to an interview in July and by the end of the month, I was told that I would be moving to France for a year.
So what am I actually doing in France? Well, I am a teacher! I work in the north-west of France (about an hour's drive from Nantes) teaching English in local primary schools. I work in 10 different schools, meaning I travel around quite a bit, and my job is to teach British culture to French children. I work with levels CP (Year 2) all the way to CM2 (Year 6) teaching nursery rhymes, traditional British playground games, typical British meals... all kinds of things!
I arrived in France at the start of September, not really knowing what to expect, but excited to start my new job. I was also looking forward to meeting my first host family – the organisation I work for asks for volunteer families to look after the five English people that come every year. The Service Anglais has been running for 20 years this year, and part of its success is down to the support from the host families. There are some families who have been hosting since the very beginning, and new families are encouraged to join each year. By living in a host family, and not in an apartment on your own, you learn so much about the French way of life, and of course, the French language!
Now, this obviously isn't a lot of help if you're not really interested in studying French at university, but what I'm trying to say is that university is not the only option after you finish your A-Levels. I knew that I wasn't ready for another 4 years of studying and exams, so by taking a year out I gave myself some time to grow up and learn a bit about the world of work. I know that I have changed so much since leaving school – not only am I more mature and more independent – I am much more willing to try new things.
You don't have to find something exciting to do – you could just find a job and save up a bit of money before going to university (because, let's face it, it's not going to be cheap)! There are all sorts of things you could get up to – volunteering, finding work placements – but you have to make the effort to look for them! The Internet is fantastic for finding things to do – after I have finished teaching in June, I have applied for jobs at Disneyland Paris, a French summer camp and a summer camp in England. If you really aren't sure what you want to do after school, I highly recommend taking a year out. Taking a year out was the right decision for me, and teaching in France has been the best experience of my life. You can obviously apply for university courses and defer them (asking the university to hold a place for you for a year). I did this, so I didn't have to worry about working and finding a place at university at the same time. At the end of the day, you just have to do what you feel comfortable doing – only you know what you want to do!
If anyone wants any more information about the gap year I am doing, the website is:
www.gapyear-france.com
Please send us your letters ... it is wonderful to hear about your experiences.
Miss Allen
Jenny Clemence (Architecture) May 2010
I leap from the door over a sea of cardboard and bolsa wood, narrowly missing the tubes of paint. A piece of wire mesh juts out from between the rolling waves of corrugated card, like a sharks fin. I land on my bed, the only clear space in the whole room; the chaotic result of architecture deadlines and barely any sleep over the last few days.
Those who tell you that architecture will involve staying up working late, not partying, are right, but it’s not all bad. It's a hectic combination of design work, tutorials, lectures, workshops, extra seminars and socialising-varied, stimulating, demanding but first and foremost, creative.
I have just had a design review for our final first year project: designing a house for a 'real' client - from the blank canvas of a site, through the brief, to finished design. Challenging but very enjoyable, this task was the culmination of a series of design projects, which have become increasingly complex over the year.
Lecture courses and workshops run parallel to our design work, with other assignments attached, often involving team work and sometimes being very hands on: visiting a quarry, sourcing stone, designing a place for conversation, and then building it on site in the town. For the last week of the project I practically became a stone - my hair matted with dust, my hands wrecked by hammering and chiselling!
This first year has been immense fun, and, although architects are known for working long hours, it is arguably one of the most sociable courses - due to the time you spend working and chatting together in the studio.
And it's definitely not all work! We've had a field trip to Newcastle, socials with the engineers/landscape students, a carnival themed fancy dress ball and much else besides.
If you are planning on studying architecture, I doubt you will regret it. I certainly don't.
Sarah Hobart (Gap Year) May 2010
My name is Sarah Hobart, and I used to go to LGGS. In Year 13, you will find yourself spending a lot of time looking at different universities, different courses – deciding what it is you want to do. The majority of people will know what they want to do. If you're like me, however, you might not have a clue, and that's okay!
All I knew in Year 13 was that I wanted to speak French, so with the help of Mrs Hopwood, Mrs Bettsworth and my form tutor I decided to take a year out. I knew that I wasn't ready to go to university just yet, so taking a year out was the best thing for me to do. I was so lucky that the French department received a poster advertising a gap year in France. After going on the website to find out a bit more, I sent off my application. I was invited to an interview in July and by the end of the month, I was told that I would be moving to France for a year.
So what am I actually doing in France? Well, I am a teacher! I work in the north-west of France (about an hour's drive from Nantes) teaching English in local primary schools. I work in 10 different schools, meaning I travel around quite a bit, and my job is to teach British culture to French children. I work with levels CP (Year 2) all the way to CM2 (Year 6) teaching nursery rhymes, traditional British playground games, typical British meals... all kinds of things!
I arrived in France at the start of September, not really knowing what to expect, but excited to start my new job. I was also looking forward to meeting my first host family – the organisation I work for asks for volunteer families to look after the five English people that come every year. The Service Anglais has been running for 20 years this year, and part of its success is down to the support from the host families. There are some families who have been hosting since the very beginning, and new families are encouraged to join each year. By living in a host family, and not in an apartment on your own, you learn so much about the French way of life, and of course, the French language!
Now, this obviously isn't a lot of help if you're not really interested in studying French at university, but what I'm trying to say is that university is not the only option after you finish your A-Levels. I knew that I wasn't ready for another 4 years of studying and exams, so by taking a year out I gave myself some time to grow up and learn a bit about the world of work. I know that I have changed so much since leaving school – not only am I more mature and more independent – I am much more willing to try new things.
You don't have to find something exciting to do – you could just find a job and save up a bit of money before going to university (because, let's face it, it's not going to be cheap)! There are all sorts of things you could get up to – volunteering, finding work placements – but you have to make the effort to look for them! The Internet is fantastic for finding things to do – after I have finished teaching in June, I have applied for jobs at Disneyland Paris, a French summer camp and a summer camp in England. If you really aren't sure what you want to do after school, I highly recommend taking a year out. Taking a year out was the right decision for me, and teaching in France has been the best experience of my life. You can obviously apply for university courses and defer them (asking the university to hold a place for you for a year). I did this, so I didn't have to worry about working and finding a place at university at the same time. At the end of the day, you just have to do what you feel comfortable doing – only you know what you want to do!
If anyone wants any more information about the gap year I am doing, the website is:
www.gapyear-france.com
Please send us your letters ... it is wonderful to hear about your experiences.
Friday, 26 March 2010
Sixth Form Life
We will post information that may be of interest to you on our Sixth Form Blog ...
if you wish to add anything please let us know.
K Shaw and K Allen
if you wish to add anything please let us know.
K Shaw and K Allen
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