We are fortunate to have a strong DYW team here at Port High who work throughout the year to ensure that every young person has access to a full range of career information, is supported in making positive decisions about their future, and ultimately can move on from school to a positive and sustained destination.  Here’s the team!

 

Ms Welsh      Depute Head Teacher Senior School and DYW Lead

Miss Harper     PT Positive Destinations

Mr Rhodes       Skills Development Scotland School Advisor

Mr Kelly            DYW School Coordinator

In addition, we work with a range of partners who help support us to support our young people, including:

• West College Scotland
• MCMC Inverclyde
• Inverclyde Council
• Skills Development Scotland
• UCAS

Please click this link to see some further information on our SDS and DYW team members! Careers Advisor Flyer Sep 2021

Here are just some of the ways in which we offer support to our young people in finding their career pathways:

Destination Tracking

We track the career ambitions and plans of our young people from S1 to S6 and throughout each year. As young people move further up the school, they are tracked more frequently. The purpose of this tracking is to:

• Identify those young people who need additional support to find their career pathway as they progress through school
• Ensure that young people have access to expert Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) on career options throughout their time in school
• Identify opportunities in employer engagement, work experience, open days and events, and workshops that will benefit young people in their particular field of interest
• Ensure that all young people can be effectively supported through group engagement, one-to-one advice, and/or engagement with agencies out with school to support their career choices.
• Ensure that our school leavers and S6 each year all have positive plans in place for their move on from school.

Destination Tracking Sheet

Data Analysis

Collecting our young people’s career information is just one part of the process of support at Port High. We then use this data throughout each year to:

• Consider curricular changes that could benefit our pupils and link in to industry areas that are identified as popular career pathways
• Identify additional opportunities such as Job Fairs, Employer Events, National Careers Week etc and target our pupils towards these according to their ambitions and aspirations
• Identify pupils at risk of not achieving a positive destination or of leaving school early and ensure that they receive additional support
• Advise pupils on suitable Options Choices at subject choice time to ensure that entry requirements are met for employment or further/higher education courses
• Tailor our PSE classes to allow targeted support each week in destination planning and Career Management Skills development. (S5&6)

PSE Personal and Social Education

In S5 & 6, our PSE classes are grouped by destination as opposed to by House Group. For example, we have a UCAS group – for those applying to University (S6), or those considering this (S5). We have a College group and a further group of those considering employment, apprenticeships or who are unsure as to their plans post-school.

In S5/6 PSE, we have a majority focus on destination planning as our pupils begin to think more seriously about their post-school pathways. This allows us to target each group effectively with resources, support and advice that is tailor made for them.

Our UCAS group will, for example, spend much time in PSE creating Personal Statements and being supported through the UCAS application process; finding out about funding, accommodation etc to ensure that this lengthy and complex process is fully supported in school. In S5, our UCAS group will study the application process they will go through the following year, will look at the wider aspects of University life, types of accommodation, entry requirements and so on. This increased level of preparation will help better prepare our young people for their next step in education.

Our PSE College groups will spend time looking at the wide range of courses on offer at different colleges; the different application requirements and processes; looking at interview techniques; preparing CVs and personal statements and, finally, actually processing their applications in class with support.

And finally, our employment group will look at CV preparation, interview techniques, covering letters to employers and, for those who are unsure, researching all of the options open to them to lead them to their ideal career plan before approaching the end of their school journey.