Careers Guidance
Helping students to make informed choices about their future is an important aspect of education at Ardingly College. 
The aim of the Careers Department is to create opportunities for our students to experience life and work beyond school – to become World Ready. Part of this is by introducing them to diverse and exciting careers and opportunities and supporting their aspirations.
We host exciting and diverse events to cater for a range of interests and skills. These include our popular ‘Raising the Profile of Languages Event,’ ARTnetWORK, Careers in Maths and Finance; Careers in PE and Sport; Careers in the Creative Industry and a Year 8 Welcome to the World of Work event. Old Ardinians, parents, other professionals and local businesses come and speak to our students about their own careers, experiences and successes, engaging and inspiring students to ask questions as well as network on a more informal basis.
Ardingly College is committed to demonstrating Excellence in our Careers provision by working towards the Quality in Careers Standard.
Other events and priorities include:
- Annual Further Education Fair
- Life Skills workshops – networking skills, presentation skills, mock one-to-one interviews and multiple mini interviews for our medical students
- One-off Careers Talks, for example – Gap Years, How to become a Pilot, Careers in Fashion, How to become an Architect, Management Consulting
- A timetabled careers programme for Shell, Remove and Fifth Form students, including Cambridge Occupational Analysts Preview Career Guidance Programme for Fifth Form to help them decide post-GCSE options
- One-to-one career guidance sessions
- Work experience placement meetings – supporting proactive students in finding work experience opportunities and drafting their CVs. Over the past year, the Careers Department has helped to place over forty Senior School students in valuable work experience placements during the school holidays. Placements include: a local architect’s studio, a local art gallery, the police force, a local interior design company, a fashion boutique, various banking and credit lending placements and a local mechanical engineering firm.
Ardingly College have teamed up with Investin to deliver immersive career experience programmes
As part of the programme an experienced advisor from Investin will attend our career events. They will also deliver training to our careers advisors to ensure they are up to date with recruitment in the most competitive industries to enable them to deliver up to date advice to students. In addition they deliver workshops on topics such as
- Networking: building relationships with professionals, both online and in-person.
- Graduate recruitment: what to expect and how to stand out, including a team-based group interview activity.
- Interview skills: preparation & performance; STARR technique and interview practice.
- Making the most of work experience.
- My Future Career (Ages 12 – 14)
In addition, our students can enrol at a discounted rate on one of their programmes which aim to create the ‘ultimate work experience’. The purpose is to give them the knowledge, experience, advantage and network they need to have a head-start in their dream career.
The programmes contain a blend of interactive simulations, company visits, seminars, networking sessions and career coaching advice, all carefully curated and delivered by experts from those industries who want to help the next generation of talent succeed.
They offer experiences in: Architecture, Art, Computer Science, Dentistry, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Fashion Design, Filmmaking, International Development, Investment Banking, Journalism, Law, Management Consultancy, Marketing, Medicine, Music, Politics, Psychology, Publishing & Veterinary Science
Further information can be found at https://investin.org/