Research your future.

It will help you to choose the right course when you progress to college if you start thinking about what you would like to do afterwards.

It might seem a long way off, but the following activities will help you to start to make some plans about your future career path - and more importantly will help you to understand what you will need to achieve at NCC in order to fulfil your plans. Make notes in your Learning Diary as you go through these activities.

Activity 1 - SACU

SACU is a free online service that has features to help you make the best choice possible when it comes to Higher Education, jobs and apprenticeships. It is designed to help you explore the range of possibilities open to you. Go to the SACU website and follow these steps.

  • Step 1: Create a SACU account

  • Step 2: Complete the Spartan Test (watch the video tutorial)

  • Step 3: View the results in either the careers cloud, apprenticeship cloud or subjects cloud (note that you can navigate between them on the next screen anyway)

  • Step 4: Investigate further some of the options shown for you by clicking on them. Note that you can click on your top 10.

  • Step 5: Add anything of interest to your 'Bookmarks'

Note: The Spartan Test is a crude tool to determine your interests. It may give you some relevant ideas, but if not then try doing the test again.

Extension tasks: Fully utilise your 'Research Zone' in SACU (shown on the right). Add research notes, use the checklist as you complete tasks, create a personal statement using the 'Personal Statement Builder' (use this useful link to start you off on your personal statement).

Activity 2 - UCAS or Apprenticeship Search

It might feel a long way off for you, but it will help you to start thinking about your future and understanding the entry requirements.  Don't worry if you don't know what you want to do yet - use this activity just to get some ideas. 

Research possible university courses or apprenticeships using the links below (or maybe both if you are unsure).  Find five separate courses or apprenticeships and for each note down the entry requirements in your learning diary. Also in your Learning Diary, reflect on whether you are currently on target.  
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Browse UCAS
Browse Apprenticeships

Some useful questions to reflect on as you write up your research are:

  1. What career do you want to be in when you are 30?

  2. What do you want to be doing when you are 23?

  3. Do you want (or need) to attend university in order to succeed in  this career, or is it better to take an apprenticeship?

  4. What course at University do you need to do or what apprenticeship?

  5. What grades do you need?

  6. What subject are you good at – what is your evidence?

  7. What are you good at outside of school – what is your evidence?