the careers department

Mrs Bennett is the Careers Education and Guidance Co-ordinator at the school, supported by Mrs Claydon. They are based in the Careers Resource Centre on the first floor of Bede House, wherey they can be contacted for help and advice on any careers issues. Their email addresses are: d.bennett@staidans.co.uk and i.claydon@staidans.co.uk.

Exploring ideas and researching opportunities is an essential part of career management and it is always a good idea to begin as soon as possible.

If you know that you want to go to University and you know what subject area you are looking for then you should go to the official Universities and Colleges Admissions Service website www.ucas.com. Enter the student pathway and carry out a course search using the "subject and location" options. There are over 50,000 courses available to study, so do not expect to find the perfect course on your first search. The major flaw with this site is that it does not offer alternative names for similar courses, eg. business studies but you can also look under management sciences or international business studies.

The UCAS website provides access to all the websites of higher education institutions which recruit through UCAS.

To view a sample UCAS application form with useful information and handy hints to assist you in completing your form click here.

If you are unsure about which course to take then you should consider answering the multiple choice questionnaire available at www.ukcoursefinder.com. The questionnaire consists of a series of multiple choice questions, your answers will determine courses suitable for you. It should take approximately 30 minutes. It will ask you to give your grades in tariff points so that it can make realistic suggestions.

Remember that you do not get points for AS results in subjects you are continuing to A2 because they are included in your final grade. If you have completed an AS and gained a grade but are not taking the subject to A2 level, those points do apply separately.

Once you have completed the questionnaire you will be presented with a list of possible suitable subjects. There are links to university website addresses. Websites differ in the quantity and quality of course information, do not be put off and look for courses offering booklets of information that can be downloaded or posted to you.

Some universities offer a virtual tour, find out if the University of your choice offers this facility by clicking here. Other useful websites are www.studentuk.com and www.thestudentroom.co.uk.

If you are interested in finding out more about applying for Oxford and Cambridge click here.

If you think you may be interested in studying in the USA visit fulbright.co.uk.

If you want to get to know students who are intending to study the same course as you at the same university as you before you start, then visit www.newstudent.org.

Other mentionable websites are www.missyourmum.com and www.beyondbakedbeans.com.

Click on the links below for more information and other useful websites: