Help with Choice

You are one of the biggest influences on decisions your child will make about their future. You know them better than anyone so you can help in ways that no one else can.
To be ready for the world of work young people need to carry on learning for longer. This doesn’t have to mean staying on at school, but from Year 11 they will need to choose whether to carry on in full time education, start an Apprenticeship or get a job with training.
There are lots of exciting options available, but choice can be confusing. The earlier you help your child to find out about what they could do, the better prepared they will be to make the right decision for them.
There is lots of help available including websites that tell you about different jobs and how to get into them as well as careers events at school and local colleges. Teachers and careers advisers can also help with applications and keep their plans on track.
You can help by taking an interest, getting involved and making sure your child is making use of all those sources of help.

Education and careers may have changed a lot since you were at school, so try to find things out alongside your child – discovering options and ideas together.
It’s difficult to hold back if you feel you know what your child should do but helping them to make their own decision – with your support – is likely to mean they will enjoy it and do better at what they choose.
The pressures of being a teenager and doing well at school can make decisions about the future another thing to worry about. By staying positive and calm you can help make it exciting rather than stressful.
Keep a balance between being realistic and encouraging. Dreams and ambitions can be kept alive by exploring all the options and having back up plans.
Information about courses and careers can be complicated. If you’re not sure about something you can contact an adviser for help.

Look out for the help available – you can look at the school website or you can ask your school what’s coming up, and when. Parents’ evenings, options evenings and open days at schools and colleges are all a good time to get help. CareersInc advisers will normally be there to talk things through, answer questions and make suggestions.
Your child may have a careers interview at school. You are very welcome to attend, just contact the school to arrange. If you are not able to attend you can find out what was discussed and help your child with their action plan. Its worth making a note of dates of open days and deadlines for applications.
If you want to help your child get started, try i-could or the Skills Explorer on Careersbox. Both websites have quick quizzes to help with career ideas and useful links to other sources of information.
If you want to find out about a career and how to get there look at Job Profiles on the National Careers Service website.
Help your child to think about what they’re good at and enjoy, the sort of personality they have, how they learn best and whether they need extra support.
If you have family, friends or colleagues who have inside knowledge of a career or a course they may be a great source of information and advice.