Which Maths course is for me?

Do you want to study Mathematics at Solihull Sixth Form College? Lots of our students do, but with the choice of different Maths courses available they don’t always know which course is the right course for them. This blog aims to help!

Let’s start by listing all the A level Maths courses we offer. They are:

A-level Mathematics

A-level Statistics
A-level Use of Maths
A-level Further Maths

It’s worth read up on what is taught in each of these subjects – if you click the subject above, it will take you to our course information on the College website.

A level Mathematics

Let us start with A level  Mathematics. This is our most popular Maths course and includes advanced mathematical topics in algebra, trigonometry and graphs. Typically, students who do this course enjoy manipulating and solving equations and like the challenge of abstract Maths. Students need at least a B grade at GCSE Mathematics to do this course although in practice most students have achieved an A grade at GCSE Maths.  Students with B grades at GCSE Maths are advised to choose A-level Statistics or Use of Maths, which are slightly less advanced and often more suitable for their university and career ambitions.

Those  mathematicians who do study A level Mathematics have a choice to make. While all students study two Core Maths options in Year 12, there are then two pathways to choose from after that; Statistics or Mechanics. For those students who are also studying A level Physics, AS Mathematics of one sort or another is a compulsory addition. Consideration should be given to what you enjoy most, what you are better at and what you want to do after College. Maths staff can advise you to help you make the right choice for you.

A level Statistics

A level Statistics, as the name suggests, deals with the statistical side of mathematics including looking at how to handle data and calculate probabilities. It’s a very worthwhile subject to pursue, not least because there is a countrywide shortage of people with strong statistical skills (for example Medical Statisticians), so your career prospects are enhanced by taking this course. There are also lots of other subjects that include statistical elements such as Psychology, Business Studies, Geography, IT, Politics and others, so this can be a good support subject for other A levels too.

A level Use of Maths

A level Use of Maths is the College’s most recently added Maths course and the way this course differs from the others we offer is that it focuses more on Mathematics in practical, real-life contexts. This course deals with how Maths applies to everyday life. It also involves a coursework element that A-level Mathematics does not and is useful to those students who need a Maths qualification to support their university application, but who do not require all of the advanced topics that the A level Mathematics course teaches. For most university courses, Use of Mathematics is as valuable a support as A level Mathematics itself and, in many ways it can be more valuable as it focuses on the application of Mathematics in context. It would support Business and Finance, Chemistry, Computing, Biology, Geography, Psychology, Management Science, Computing and most Economics courses.

A level Further Maths

Now, let’s consider A level  Further Maths. As the title suggests, this includes further more advanced mathematics and is an additional A-level in Maths. Students studying Further Maths must also study A level Maths alongside it so will be studying for two A levels in Maths. You need to be a very gifted Mathematician to do this course, achieving a grade A or A* in GSCE Mathematics. If you want to take Further Maths, you will do so as part of a 5 AS package, so only students who pick 5 subjects rather than the standard 4 subjects at AS can study this subject.

Indeed, if you think that Maths is a course you want to study at A level, there will always be an opportunity at interview to talk over the different options, so you can be confident that whichever Maths course you pick, it is the right one for you and for your future ambitions.

Hopefully this blog has helped you to decide which course to apply for, but if you make an application and then change your mind, don’t worry, because nothing is set in stone and changes can be requested. While we can’t always guarantee changes (particularly if they are made very late), changing from one Maths course to another is easier to accommodate than two unrelated subjects.

Please read up on the courses on our website at www.solihullsfc.ac.uk and if you want to make an application, you can do so online at http://apply.solihullsfc.ac.uk/. There will also be an opportunity to visit the College and talk to staff at our Information Evening on Thursday 7 February 2013. We are open from 5.00pm – 8.00pm, with a last entry time of 7.30pm and we ask that all prospective students come accompanied by a parent or other adult please.

It’s A Capital Experience

The Sixth Form College, Solihull now has three Career Academies and our latest cohort of students kicked off their involvement in this exciting programme with a trip to London recently to take advantage of the day-long ‘A Capital Experience’ event

Organised by national business-education charity Career Academies UK, the day involved around 1,300 students from across the UK, as well as over 75 leading London-based employers such as AstraZeneca, AXA, Barclays, Clifford Chance LLP, Lloyds Banking Group, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Fujitsu, RSA, Royal Mail and Santander.

Our Career Academy students come from our BTEC Business, BTEC IT and BTEC Applied Sciences courses and the students all travelled down together. Although they joined up for the same activity in the afternoon, they started off with morning events at appropriate businesses for their courses, for a ‘behind the scenes’ look at how the organisation works, including a workplace tour.

The Business Career Academy students visited BDO Stoy Hayward, a leading firm of Chartered Accountants. They were given a detailed introduction to the firm's recruitment and selection procedure for both graduates and school leavers. Hints and tips were given on completing application forms, how to act in interviews and attending assessment centres. A question and answer session gave students the opportunity to find out more about careers in accountancy and the starting pay they can expect.

For the Science Career Academy students a visit to the Institution of Engineering and Technology was their morning activity. While there, they were given advice about applying for jobs in the engineering sector. A firm called F1 in Schools gave a presentation, providing the students with all kinds of advice, from applying for the different type of engineering degrees, the different type of entry routes and the bursaries and funding they offer. They also talked about the various competitions they hold, such building a formula one car using one of their kits provided and the students got a chance to compete with other schools to race the car on a special track. The schools with the fastest cars are going to be entered in to a draw, the winner of which could go to an exhibition in Abu Dhabi!

Meanwhile, the IT students got a taste of life at e-skills UK, one of Britain’s most influential organisations. They took part in workshops that helped develop employability skills for the IT sector, and also enjoyed virtual campus demonstrations and feedback sessions, as well as Cyber security training.

 

 

After the morning visits, all the groups joined up again and made their way to the Royal Festival Hall, where they got the chance to network with other young people from across the UK, taking part in the programme and participated in business-related activities to boost their employability skills.

During the afternoon, they received valuable advice from motivational speaker Action Jackson; adventurer Tori James, who was in the first ever all-female team to complete the Polar Challenge, a gruelling 360 mile race to the magnetic North Pole; and Career Academies UK Chair, Heather McGregor. The afternoon was led by Master of Ceremonies Lee Jackson, the UK’s most experienced school and college motivational speaker and author of ‘How to be Sick [great] at School’.

‘A Capital Experience’ is the biggest national one-day event in the Career Academy calendar and kicks off the two-year programme for young people taking part. We have been running the programme for 3 years, but only in Business; the IT and Science Career Academies are brand new and those students have got off to a great start by attending ‘A Capital Experience’. They can now look forward to a structured programme of internships, mentoring, motivational lectures and visits.

A levels or BTECs – What’s right for you?

Students who apply to The Sixth Form College, Solihull have so many choices, 42 subjects at A level and 6 at BTEC, but before you get to that stage you've got to decide which type of course is right for you.

A levels or BTEC; that is the question!

First of all, let's dispel one myth; that BTECs are easier than A levels! Not true! BTEC Extended Diplomas offer advanced level study just like A levels. They lead to progression to university and employment just like A levels and are highly regarded qualifications. They just have different demands. So what is the difference?

One of the main distinctions is the way you learn and how you are assessed. A levels involve examinations, while BTECs do not. While some A level subjects include an element of coursework (e.g. Art, Biology, Chemistry, Dance, Drama and English) others (like Business Studies, Modern Foreign Languages and Mathematics) have no coursework at all. Our BTEC Extended Diplomas are 100% coursework, so if you are someone who struggles in exams why not consider a BTEC instead.

Because of the coursework element to BTEC courses, students need to be able to manage their time to meet their coursework deadlines and will often be working in groups, so good team-work is a necessary skill.

Another difference is the breakdown of what you study. BTEC Extended Diplomas are two-year courses equivalent to studying three A levels, so if you choose a BTEC you are picking just one subject. At The Sixth Form College, Solihull that means picking either Applied Sciences, Art & Design, Business, Health & Social Care, IT Practitioners or Sport. Clearly this narrows your learning somewhat, but depending upon your Higher Education or career ambitions, this might be perfectly appropriate for you.

If, instead, you choose A levels, you will be asked to pick four subjects to study and almost any combination of subjects can be studied together. Students will study these four subjects in Year 12 and at the end of that year will get their AS grades, which are qualifications in their own right. Students will normally drop one of their four subjects in Year 13 to concentrate on the three remaining subjects to get the full A level (or A2 as it's known). Students should not feel that they have wasted their time in the fourth subject they dropped, as the AS grade they get still counts towards applications for university.

We are frequently asked if students can take more than 4 AS subjects or if they can continue with 4 subjects into a second year. In answer to that, a few very able students (mostly with A and A* grades at GCSE) sometimes take 5 AS subjects, but only if they are looking to study Mathematics and Further Maths, as well as 3 other subjects. In addition, students are normally only allowed to stick with 4 subjects in Year 13 if they achieve very highly (i.e. B grades or above as AS level) and can demonstrate that they will cope with what is a heavy workload. We would rather you focussed on 3 subjects and did those well than struggled with four. Three A levels is enough to get into university after all.

If you choose A levels, then your next choice is which four subjects you should select. For some careers, your choice of subjects is critical - for example, those wanting to study Medicine must choose A level Biology and Chemistry. For other careers, it is not as important what you study as the fact that you achieve good grades. That's why we tell students who have not yet decided on a career path to pick those subjects they enjoy and are good at; you're more likely to do well at A level if you're interested in the subject. If you do have a career in mind, it might be worth doing some research into what subjects (if any) universities want you to take to progress onto their courses.

In summary, you need to ask yourself the following questions:

·         what do I want to do as a career?
·         does my chosen career or university course require me to study certain subjects?
·         do I do better in exams or coursework?

If you can honestly answer those questions and do your homework on what our courses involve, we're sure you will be able to choose the right options for you.

And if you are still not sure, why not ask us for advice? Message us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sfcsadmissions or contact us on Twitter (@sfcsapply). You can also come along to our Information Evening on Thursday 7 February 2013 from 5.00pm - 8.00pm (last entry at 7.30pm, all students must come accompanied by a parent/guardian).

Sport's Report - 07/11/12

Ladies Football

The Ladies Football team played their first game of the season away against Sandwell Academy on Wednesday and won 6-3. It was a great performance from the girls, with 2 goals from Faye Richards, 1 goal from Hannah Wardell and 3 goals from Siann Wedderburn. The hatrick hero was also given the Man of the Match award.

2nd Team Men’s Football

The 2nd Team played Stratford College at home on Wednesday. Stratford were unbeaten for the season so far and they went in at half time 1-0 up. However, SFCS scored twice in the 2nd half, with goals coming from Josh Champaneri and Keelan Reilly. The final 2-1 scoreline was a great result, which puts the College second in the league.

Rugby

The Rugby boys played Shrewsbury College at home on Wednesday and unfortunately lost 12-0.

CAREER ACADEMY EXPANDING

The Sixth Form College, Solihull has been running a Career Academy for the last two years, but it's about to get bigger! After piloting the programme in Business, the initiative is being expanded to include IT and Science as well.

The initiative raises the aspirations and develops the employability skills of young people. Career Academies UK is working with the College to secure workplace networks and experiences for students, linking up with both local and national employers. The  programme is open to students on the BTEC Business, Applied Science and IT Practitioners courses and students benefit from visits to local businesses, guru lectures from business representatives, business mentoring and a 6-week summer internship.

This has been very successful in Business, with firms like Aston University, BDO Accountants, British Telecom, Chiltern Railways, Coventry Building Society, Grant Thornton, Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs, Jaguar Land Rover, Johnsons Coaches, npower, Solihull Primary Care Trust, Solihull Chamber, Solihull Community Housing, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Village Hotel and West Midlands Police all supporting the programme.

25 new students - across all three BTEC courses - have just been accepted onto the Career Academy programme for the next two years and their involvement will start in earnest this evening when they meet their Business mentors. These individuals will be business men and women from local firms, who will be there to guide and advise the students. They will meet regularly and discuss what they are doing and what they could do more of to improve their employability prospects.

This first meeting will take place at an Ice Breaker event at the College, which will involve a fun activity, forcing students and mentors alike to work together and get to know each other.

The students will also be heading down to London soon for the Capital Experience event that Career Academies UK puts on every year for Career Academy students across the country.

Keep your eye on the blog and on the College website (www.solihullsfc.ac.uk) for more news from the College's Career Academy is the coming weeks and months.

SPORT'S REPORT – 31 October 2012

Posting by Jez Ingram, Sports Activities Co-ordinator

This edition of Sport's Report brings you news from before and after half-term.

Football
Before half-term, the men’s 2nd team travelled to Warwick College and won 9-0! There were four goals from Ben Stuart, who was understandably given the Man of the Match award.

It was a first win of the season for the football teams and well worth the wait! Well done lads!

Basketball
Since half-term, the basketball team have been in action this week against Dudley College. They secured a very good 80-37 victory - a very convincing performance.

More sports news coming soon.

SPORT'S REPORT – 3 October 2012

Posting by Courtney Ingram, BTEC Sport and A2 English Language student.

Hockey
No fixture this week for Hockey, due to the Birmingham Colleges ’ County trials. Let’s hope the lads were successful.

Netball
SSFC’s 1st team travelled to Solihull School. SSFC played extremely well; they came out the stronger team when defending and attacking. They were able to make space for their team mates to make successful passes without Solihull School being able to intercept. SSFC were playing both as a team and individually, and they were all showing determination to win. The final score was 22–16 to SSFC.

SSFC 2nd team travelled to Solihull School too and also played extremely well. When Solihull School attacked and scored, SSFC always got back into the game very quickly, with Faye Richards placing every shot and rebound into the net. It was such a close game, with SSFC down by 4 points early on. However, the sixth form college got back into the game particularly well and ended up losing by just one point. The final score was 13–12 to Solihull School.

Rugby
SSFC were at home to King Edwards Five Ways. Unfortunately SSFC lost 46–0.

Football
SSFC 2nd team travelled away to play Birmingham Metropolitan College. SSFC were leading at half time from an early goal scored by Scott Price. Numerous good saves made from Jake Sayer kept SSFC at ease. A chaotic start to the second half of the game saw SSFC concede two early goals, giving Birmingham Metropolitan the advantage. Scott Price then equalised showing a lot of courage and determination to get to all loose balls in the 6 yard box. SSFC started to perform very sloppy, not playing as team and gave away a penalty. SSFC then scored an own goal, giving Birmingham Metropolitan a 4-2 victory.

Rest of the 2nd team squad played a friendly fixture against Alcester, which was a very competitive game. Phillip Adebiyi scored twice to make it 2-2, but SSFC couldn’t hold for the whole game. They battled for all the loose balls, but all it took was SSFC switching off for the slightest second and Alcester was able to take that advantage and score within the last few minutes, making the final score 3-2 to Alcester.

Sport’s Report – 26 September 2012

Posting by Courtney Ingram, BTEC Sport and A2 English Language student.

Football

SSFC 1st team vs N.E Worcestershire College

N.E Worcestershire College travelled to SSFC. It was very competitive all the way through, with a goal from Joe Clarke to open the score in the Sixth Form’s favour. N.E Worcestershire came back to equalise. This was a very close game; it could have gone to either team and both teams played equally well. The final score was 1-1.

SSFC 2nd team vs Birmingham Metropolitan College

SSFC travelled away to Birmingham Metropolitan College for their first game of the season. SSFC went behind in the first 5 minutes, but managed to get back into the game very quickly by scoring two lightning goals by Matt Pemberton and Ben Stuart. Birmingham Metropolitan equalised just before half time, but missed chances in the second half. However, it was only a matter time until Birmingham Metropolitan took the lead and scored again just before full time, to go onto to win 4-2.

Congratulations to Keelan Reilly, who was awarded Man of the Match. 

Hockey

The first men’s British College’s league game was against Hereford Sixth Form College Although the team lost 4-3, the team’s performance was consistent and the lads stayed positive throughout.

Andy Newman was awarded Man of the Match for his exceptional play and for the hatrick he scored.

Basketball

SSFC vs Warwickshire College

The first quarter was close, with the score being 20-23 to Warwickshire. The second quarter was also very close with Warwickshire out-scoring SFCS 12-14 to make it 32-37 to the visitors.

In the third quarter, Warwickshire seemed to come out stronger, with the score 13-22 to Warwickshire in that period; 45-59 overall.

The fourth quarter went exceptionally well for both teams, and was a well-played quarter as SFCS evened up the scoring 18-18. Nonetheless, it was too little too late and the final score was 73-63 to Warwickshire College.

Netball

Due to the bad weather conditions, their game against King Edward’s Stourbridge had to be cancelled. This game will be re-arranged for later on in the season.

GEARING UP FOR OPEN DAY

Post by Bev Bishop, Marketing Co-ordinator

We’re only two weeks into the 2012/2013 academic year, but already we’re thinking about the 2013/2014 year! Open Day is the best opportunity that young people have to take a look round the College and learn more about what we can offer to them and it’s fast approaching!

 

Our Open Day is taking place on Saturday 13 October 2012. We are open from 9.30am until 3.30pm, although last entry is at 2.30pm and we are asking all prospective students to come accompanied by a parent/carer or another adult. This is because we want to involve parents in the decision making process. After all, this next step in a young person’s education is an important choice, so it’s important to get it right!

 

We think we are a great option for young people after Year 11. But, why is that?

Well, choice of courses is one reason. We are a large sixth form college and that can intimidate some people, who worry we won’t be able to offer personal attention to young people. The reality is that our size allows us to offer a large range of courses that smaller institutions would not be able to do, but because we have a team of dedicated teachers and academic coaches, the support network is also available to young people.

 

Academic coaches are another of our strengths. They are support staff whose job it is to support students in their studies. This means they are there to help them with any problems they have and guide them towards making the most of their opportunity at College to stretch their potential. It might be that they help them with personal difficulties they have or offer assistance with university or job applications. They are there to help!

 

The teachers themselves are a huge reason why we are successful. For a start, they are specialists, not only in their chosen subject, but also in 16-19 education. Because they teach just A level or BTEC Extended Diplomas, they can really dedicate themselves to this advanced level teaching. They are enthusiastic and make use of excellent resources to ensure that teaching is enjoyable as well as informative. They are available outside of lessons for extra support if needed too. We pride ourselves on the fact that we always offer assistance whenever it is asked for.

 

I don’t expect you to take my word for all this. The people you should really ask are the students themselves. There’s a chance to do that at Open Day, as well as talking to teachers in all subject areas and hearing from the Principal Paul Ashdown, who will be giving talks throughout the day.

 

You can also check out student testimony on our website at http://www.solihullsfc.ac.uk/prospective-students/student-testimony.

 

That’s what we say about The Sixth Form College, Solihull. Now it’s time for you to make up your own mind about us. Come along to Open Day and decide for yourself. To learn more about Open Day and to pre-register your details for this event, please go to http://bit.ly/Ribueu.

 

See you on the 13 October! J

SPORT'S REPORT – 19 September 2012

Posting by Courtney Ingram, BTEC Sport and A2 English Language student.

Football

1^st team vs Henley College, Coventry

The Sixth Form College, Solihull’s team travelled to Henley College, Coventry for their first game of the season. SFCS believed that this was going to be a tense occasion and also a tough one for them as the College has never been able to beat Henley at their ground over the past 5 years.

Henley started the game very positively by breaking the deadlock very soon on into the game. The game started to settle down with the Sixth Form on track, battling for the ball, getting players more involved, and came close to equalising with shots from Joe Clarke and Matt Stanley. However, the Henley goalkeeper was well situated to keep his team in the lead up to half time.

Early into the second half, Henley came back out stronger with very quick play, which lead to them scoring another two goals but SFCS was still battling for the ball. With the score 3-0 to Henley this meant that the Sixth Form needed to up their game; they changed their formation and started to play very well, with a couple of strong efforts coming close.

Finally the deadlock was broken with a superb effort by Year 12 student Ben Stuart, who placed his effort into the bottom corner of the goal. As soon as that goal came, SFCS turned into a different team, using all their last minute energy up, attacking the ball consistently, with shot after shot, but it was just too late.  The whistle was blown and the final score was 3-1 to Henley College.

Congratulation to Year 12 Ben Sutton, who played very well in with the Year 13’s, and who was awarded Man of the Match. 

Basketball

SFCS vs Worcester College

The Sixth Form College, Solihull’s team travelled to Worcester College for their first game of the season. The final score was 74-78 to Worcester College, which shows it was a very close game. SFCS were 20 points behind at one stage, but got back into the game very quickly and stronger to trail by only 4 points by the end of the game. It was a very confident first game from SFCS.

Netball

1^st team (Year 13) vs Alcester

SFCS were at home for their first game of the season, which set the players in a comfortable position. The Sixth Form played very well around the court, using the space effectively and involving all the players. GS (Goal shooter) Frankie Rudge and GA (Goal Attacker) Sophie Wills played outstandingly well, placing every chance they had into the net. It was really good to see SFCS playing as a team for the first time altogether and they were a superior team. Alcester was also a strong and competitive team, who didn’t give up. They defended really well and they were quick to get the ball to other end of the court. It was a very close game in ability wise, and both team played exceptionally well.  The final score was 29-11 to SFCS.

2^nd team (Year 12) vs Alcester

As it was SFCS 2^nd team’s first game of the season, the Sixth Form looked very nervous, but when they started to play, they really shone. However, Alcester just kept coming back strongly. SFCS didn’t give up; they kept going until the whistle was blown. With it being SFCS’s first game, it really showed ability throughout the side and demonstrates that it is only early days for the team and that development will take time. Unfortunately the final score was 25-8 to Alcester.

Rugby

SFCS  vs Old Swinford

SFCS went away to play Swinford. The 1^st team played exceptionally well as it was their first game of the season all playing as a team and they played very confidently to get a score line of 31- 10, a brilliant score for the first game.

SFCS’s 2^nd team played very well too, for their first game of the season. The final score was 22 – 17. So a great start for both rugby teams.

Hockey

SFCS vs Solihull School

SFCS travelled to Solihull School for their first game of the season, and although they lost 7-0, it was their first game as a team and the lads played very well together. The Sixth Form team is made up of a mixture of some club and no club players, therefore this was a great achievement as there are different abilities throughout the team, but it’s still early days. A big mention goes to Harry Reynolds, who took on Captain’s role and carried this out very well.

START OF A NEW YEAR!

Post by Bev Bishop, Marketing Co-ordinator

We are one week into the new 2012/2013 academic year and new students and returning students are settling in well.

But before we look at the start of the new year, I just want to reflect for a moment on the year we have just finished. According to the media, A level standards fell for the first time this year, but not at The Sixth Form College, Solihull and our students (not to mention the teachers) deserve huge praise for that.

I won’t quote statistics at you here, but suffice to say results were up on the year before and if you want to see exactly how our students did this summer, check out our Success leaflet, available online now at http://bit.ly/Rm7f3s.

We’ve also added a number of success stories to the College website too so you can get some examples of students success and progression – check them out at http://www.solihullsfc.ac.uk/results/success-stories.

Back to the start of this year and enrolling thousands of students is no easy task, but the College adopted a new system this year and big thanks must go to our Web Development Team, who have created a great online enrolment system.

Students moving from Year 12 into Year 13 were invited for the first time to enrol online and so were able to do this from home or even from abroad while they were on holiday. Many chose to do this and enrolled quickly and easily. Some chose to come into College because they wanted to discuss their options and a few were asked to come in too. For the first time, enrolment was available as soon as they picked up their results and our first online enrolment came at 6.02am on Thursday 16 August – just two minutes after A level results were published!

Inevitably, enrolling new students into Year 12 is a slightly more complex issue, as we have to check GCSE results, gather contact information and provide them with appropriate advice, amongst other things. As such, all new students came into College to enrol and staff enrolled them using the online system, which we have christened Tyber.

Every new student went away with a starter pack this year to set them up for their studies. This included a College draw-string rucksack, a ring binder (with the Student Handbook inside) and a College pen. These materials are already being put to good use in the first week of term.

It’s only the start of a brand new year, but we’re looking forward to the challenge ahead. Keep your eye on the blog for more news from around College.

CAREER ACADEMY GRADUATION!!!

Posting by Ranjit Hayer, Career Academy Manager

All that hard work has paid off! Our Year 13 Business Career Academy students have graduated from the Career Academies UK programme! Congratulations to them all!

I joined the students at London’s Institute of Education last week, accompanied by the Principal Paul Ashdown. We were there, with other Career Academy students from across the country to formally recognise the last 18 months of business experiences.

This is a national programme, run by Career Academies UK and it aims to raise the aspirations of 16 to 19-year-olds, boosting their employability skills by giving them real life experiences in business. In total, over 750 young people, drawn from 81 schools and colleges across the UK, will have graduated from the programme this year.

This has been The Sixth Form College, Solihull’s first cohort of Business Career Academy students and they have benefitted from over 15 guru lectures, 15 visits to a variety of businesses and 10 internships during their time in the programme. The 6-week paid internships were at Coventry Building Society, the Village Hotel, Grant Thornton Chartered Accountants, accountancy firm BDO, Chiltern Railways and Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council. The students have also each had a business mentor.

Their involvement in the Career Academy began in 2009 at 'A Capital Experience' in London. Guest speaker at that event was Action Jackson and he was again in London last week to offer his congratulations as the students graduated. It was good to see him again!

Director General of the Institute of Directors, Miles Templeman, was also there and he offered words of encouragement to all the students. He spoke about how graduates of the Career Academy are now able to significantly raise the UK’s skills level. He also spoke about the internships undertaken by students and said it distinguished them from other young people.

BBC journalist and presenter Evan Davies also congratulated the students on their achievements. He drew from his experiences of presenting “Dragon’s Den” and new BBC series “Business Nightmares” and offered the graduates four tips for the future; not to be afraid to make mistakes, to be able to admit and learn from these mistakes, to be humble and finally, to take the pride from when life is going really well and to hold this for when times are tough.

College Principal Paul Ashdown stood to applaud as each of our graduating students, as they picked up their graduation certificated and expressed his pleasure in their progress over the last two years.

He, like me, is very proud of the students’ achievements. I’ve seen how much they have developed over the last two years. In particular, their confidence has grown and this will benefit them hugely in the extremely competitive world of business. They have had so many wonderful business-related experiences, not least their six-week internships, which taught them so much and gave them real world experience. I wish them all the best for the future.

DUKE OF EDINBURGH STUDENTS BRAVE STORMY NORTH YORK MOORS

Posting by Grigor Wallace, Duke of Edinburgh Co-ordinator

Some of the College’s more intrepid students donned their backpacks and hiking boots over the Easter break, as they undertook an expedition to the North York Moors in preparation for their assessed Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award.

 

A group of twelve students were unfortunate with the timing of their expedition, as the weather took a turn for the worse, drenching them the first night, and that was before the walking even started! Unfortunately the weather worsened further on day one, but the lessons learnt on looking after equipment during difficult conditions were invaluable.

The weather did ease up slightly for the remainder of the trip however consistent heavy showers hampered progress. Understandably the morale of the students did fluctuate over the four days but lessons were learnt about how to react to difficult situations and how to maintain group morale. The wild camps were well received, and cooking, a major part of any expedition, was carried out safely following a balanced diet. Packs lightened considerably over the trip, which was a welcome relief to all!

This was a great experience for the students, because it provided very good preparation for their final expedition in the Cheviots in August. For that expedition, they will be assessed on navigation, camp craft, group organisation and leadership and of course the physical toil that comes with completing approx 16km per day in open and wild country with a large rucksack.

 

The behaviour of all the students who took part was excellent and their navigation was generally good in difficult conditions. Some of the students struggled a little physically and were victims of blisters, and weak ankles, but even that is a good learning experience and prepares them well for future trips.

 

Thanks go to the staff: Dave Lewis, Jenny Hall, Louis Hume, and Suzanne Madeley. Their help was invaluable and without it trips of this kind would not be possible.

There are lots of photos from the expedition on the College Facebook page.

STICKLEBRICK CHALLENGE AT HMRC

Posting by Ruth Sharp, Business Career Academy Co-ordinator

The Business Career Academy students went to HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs) at Birmingham Fort a talk and tour last week.

Whilst there, there they took part in a role-playing activity designed to simulate the production and retail of a product, thus teaching them about the process involved in a manufacturing business. The exercise took an hour, during which they were required to make a ‘product’ out of stickle bricks.

The students each had individual roles to act out in the scenario. They had to work together to make the products and then deliver them to the customer. Roles included quality inspector, customer liaison, store manager, materials handler and production workers. As the activity progressed, they were introduced to various lean production concepts and learned how HMRC uses these concepts in the service industry.

The students really enjoyed the visit; members of the public are not normally allowed to visit the site they even having to sign the Official Secrets Act!

The visit ended with a tour of the general office, where students could see the team whiteboards recording activities they had just learned about.

Huge thanks go to HMRC for hosting us.

NEXT STOP CHILTERN RAILWAYS

Posting by Ranjit Hayer, Career Academy Manager and Business teacher

The Business Career Academy students have been out and about again, getting first hand knowledge of local business and this week they learnt about the transport industry, and specifically the railways.

The Year 13 students went to visit Moor Street station in Birmingham City Centre. The station is owned by Chiltern Railways and the visit enabled the students to see how the station and the company operates.

Malcolm Holmes, the station manager, welcomed the students and went through the history of Chiltern Railways, who are owned by a German company called Deutsche Bahn.

Chiltern Railways have spent a lot of money in investing in their trains and have recently begun their new service from Birmingham to London, which takes just  90 minutes (down from the 2 hours it took previously). The students heard about how Chiltern Railways came about with the changes.

The talk from Malcolm Holmes also explained how competitive the rail market is, with a total of 13 different train franchisees in the UK. Chiltern Railways are currently re-investing in Solihull station, as a massive 1.5 million passengers pass through this station and Chiltern Railways believe that there is a potential for this number to increase if there were more parking spaces. The new car park is currently being developed and will do so over the next few months.

The students were provided refreshments in tradition train fashion on one of the company’s trolleys, which was full to the brim with snacks they would find on their trains.

The students heard about how a career in the train industry is rewarding and challenging and how quickly it changes. Chiltern have just launch free wifi on their journeys from Birmingham to London to help launch their new faster trains.

It was an interesting visit and we thank Malcolm and Chiltern Railways for hosting us.

PARLIAMENTARY FIELDTRIP

Posting by Bev Bishop, Marketing Co-ordinator

Everyone loves a good fieldtrip! The summer term kicked off with just such a fieldtrip for A level Politics students this week, as a coach of 38 students and 3 staff (myself included) journeyed to London to visit the Palace of Westminster and the Imperial War Museum.

A surprising good journey saw us arrive in London early. We braved the rain and walked down to Downing Street to catch a glimpse of the street that is home to the Prime Minister. A glimpse is all we did get, because security is tight at this famous address these days, with high gates and police officers guarding the entrance.

The main focus of the trip was another place where you will commonly see the Prime Minster; the Houses of Parliament. Again, security was tight. After going through airport-style security checks we each had our photo taken for a pass we had to wear round our necks for the duration of our visit.

We congregated in Westminster Hall, which is a big stone room, which dates back to 1099!! Monarchs traditionally lie in state in this massive hall when they die, prior to burial. This is an honour occasionally extended to Prime Ministers, as was the case with Winston Churchill. The Hall has also been used for centuries for coronation banquets and trials, including that of Guy Fawkes and King Charles I.

We were met by our guide Cliff in Westminster Hall and our official tour began. We went into the House of Lords and the House of Commons, recognisable from their frequent appearances of television. Our guide explained the rituals and traditions of both houses, including the role the monarchy plays in opening parliament; something that will happen shortly. The history and the architecture was also explained to us and we admired the many paintings, tapestries and statues that adorn this famous building.

The visit was fascinating and seeing it first hand helped bring Parliament to life for the students, for whom this forms part of their A level Politics and Government course.

After lunch, we walked across the river and south to the Imperial War Museum. This is one of London’s many fabulous museums, which offers fantastic exhibits entirely free of charge. We had two hours to take in as much of the museum as we could. Truthfully, two hours is not enough, but we saw what we could.

From a lobby full of tanks, guns and aeroplanes from past conflicts, the museum then expands to exhibits on the First and Second World Wars, the Cold War, the Vietnam War, the Faulklands War, the Gulf War and the Troubles in Northern Ireland, plus much more. The World War One exhibit even includes a mock-up of a trench that you can walk through, complete with unpleasant but realistic smells piped in.

The highlight of the museum – if you can call it that – is definitely the Holocaust exhibit. This is an immensely hard-hitting and moving exhibit, telling the tale of the persecution of Jews and many other groups by Nazi Germany during World War Two. It includes a model of Auschwitz and many artefacts rescued from this concentration camp, including hundreds of shoes from people who were killed in the gas chambers. There are video screens dotted throughout the exhibit, showing actual footage from the time and survivors talking of their experiences. Many of the videos are very difficult to watch, but act as a fitting tribute to a terrible chapter in history that it is important we do not forget.

This particular exhibit was so fascinating to one student that he missed the scheduled time to meet and a search party had to be sent in to retrieve him! He returned to cheers from the students at the end of an absorbing day.

JOHN LEWIS VISIT FOR CAREER ACADEMY

Posting by Ranjit Hayer, Business teacher and Career Academy Manager
Our Year 13 Business Career Academy students visited the John Lewis National Returns Centre this week. The students undertook the visit to see how one of the leading UK's retailers operates the returns aspect of its business.

The students were given a short history of John Lewis, including learning about the firm’s unique style of partnership of all employees, which came about from the son of the original John Lewis called John Sedan Lewis. He became known (and preferred to be called) Sedan Lewis to disassociate himself from his father. The students were fascinated to hear of his management style, for he was reputed to have a temper and was very easily angered!

The students also learnt about the development of a huge new store opening above Birmingham New Street Station and how John Lewis has repositioned themselves in the market and expanded their Waitrose supermarket stores.

The students were given a guided tour round the depot to see what happens when products are returned to the John Lewis, once they are deemed faulty or simply returned when bought online.

The students were also searched as they left the premises by a device that chooses people at random for security checks! This practice is due to the high value of goods that come through John Lewis on a day to day basis

It was a fascinating visit and the students enjoyed it. Thanks go to the staff at John Lewis for giving up their time to host us. Retail is a huge business sector, so it’s really valuable for the students to get a taste of what goes on behind the scenes.

Away from the Business Career Academy, the students’ A level counterparts took part in a sticklebrick activity this week, in which they learnt about non-financial methods of motivation. The task involved job rotation, in which students were divided into groups and given tasks to complete, then swapped over and repeated each others tasks. The students were then set a larger group task to design towers with sticklebricks. This involved teamwork, which the students all preferred, as it meant that they could develop their own ideas, which is often used in business as a way of developing teams.

STUDENTS PITCH BUSINESS PLANS TO LLOYDS TSB

Posting by Ranjit Hayer, Business teacher

All last week, Year 13 students on the BTEC Extended Diploma in Business course were doing their business plan presentations.

Standing up and having to make a presentation is daunting at the best of times, but this year three representatives from Lloyds TSB were part of the panels to give students a bank managers opinion of their presentation. Richard Hall, Sharon Warren & Dawn Gilbert from Lloyds TSB are providing their expert financial help on what would happen if our students pitched their ideas to banks for finance.

Each presentation has been different; some even had sample smoothies for their Shakes 2Go business, others had sample menus for their Burger Express business. Each presentation was packed full of interesting ideas.

Other ventures pitched to the panel included plans for a bar, a restaurant, a takeaway, a mobile drink and snacks vendor and a bridal magazine. The idea for the bar was an establishment called The Hang ‘O’ Bar and this presentation included visuals of the uniforms that bar staff would wear. The restaurant business plan was entitled Around in 4 and was for a buffet-style restaurant selling Italian, Chinese, British & Indian cuisine.

Jai Chee kept up the food theme – this business plan was for a Chinese Takeaway, while the final food-related presentation concerned Hot Stop, a mobile hot drinks & snack service provider.

Dugan was the only business plan idea that was not related to catering of some sort and this was the pitch for a bridal magazine aimed at East & West brides.

This project really helped the students to be creative, which is essential for a successful business, but it also showed them all the different things they need to think about when setting up a business. Getting funding to launch a business often means going out and pitching your idea to lenders just as the students did and they learned how important it is to demonstrate that your business plan represents a good investment.

Well done to all the students who took part. There are some photos below and more on the College's Facebook page.