Work with Training

You can go into full-time employment after you leave Year 11 providing you are 16 before the end of August although you can’t start your job until after the last Friday in June.
There are some jobs you can go straight into, however most employers like you to have experience or qualifications, or both.
If you are leaving Year 11 in 2014 and go into full-time employment, you must also enrol for a part-time course to study alongside your job. The course must lead towards an accredited qualification and take 280 hours to complete. The Department for Education has more information on why it is important to carry on learning and the rules for 16 to 17 year olds.
There are many ways to get a job and not all jobs are advertised so it’s important to approach employers to ask about vacancies as well as apply for those that are advertised.

The rules on going into employment after school are changing depending on when you leave Year 11:
- If you leave Year 11 in the summer of 2014 and get a full-time job, you will need to also study part-time until the end of the academic year in which you turn 17.
- If you leave Year 11 in the summer 2015 onwards and get a full-time job, you will need to also study part-time until the end of the academic year in which you turn 18.
Consider what your long term prospects would be if you went straight into a job after school or college. You should look at what opportunities there are to progress in your chosen job.
An Apprenticeship may be a better option if you want to gain nationally recognised qualifications as well as experience to help improve your prospects.
Getting a job is not guaranteed, and so you should consider applying for courses in further education or Apprenticeships in order to keep your options open and maximise your chances of progressing in to your chosen career.

To start applying for jobs you will need a CV, this will tell an employer what you have already achieved, what you hope to achieve and what skills you have.
Search on the governments Universal Jobmatch website. There are thousands of jobs on here that you can apply for online.
You can find other job adverts in local newspapers, job websites and on display in local businesses – register for email alerts where possible.
Lots of job vacancies aren’t advertised so it’s important to take your CV to local employers and ask about any suitable opportunities – this shows how enthusiastic you are! Look on yell.com for companies in your local area.