Developing Employability Skills

Our level 2 Business & level 2 ICT students had a session put on for them from Working Options to improve their employability skills for when they have left the college.

On the 11th of February, our level 2 Business and level 2 ICT students were lucky enough to have guest speakers from both Working Options and Ella’s Kitchen come in to deliver a talk on employability skills and problem solving.

Lauren Monk, from Working Options, who deliver an employability and life skills programme which helps young people to aim high and fulfil their potential, broke down the importance of a first impression when applying for a job and how best to present yourself. Students practiced first introductions, answering interview questions and how to breakdown a job description to ensure you can ensure you are a great fit for the employer.

Sessions such as this, are a great way to prepare our students for life after college and ensures that our students are leaving college with a good understanding of employability skills and how they can set themselves apart from others, when applying for hotly contested job roles.

Throughout the session, students voiced their approval, stating that they had learnt a variety of new things that they believe will benefit them going forwards. These included, knowing where to access key resources to aid their employability skills, ensuring they research the company before interviews to give a great first impression and different models they could use to help them when answering questions in front of employers.

Lauren from Working Options was impressed with the students’ engagement stating “there was great involvement and participation from all of the students throughout, this enables the sessions to run so much smoother. I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with the students from The Henley College and I’m very grateful for the support shown from the guys at Ella’s Kitchen”.

Curriculum leader Swapna Jare said that “the problem solving activities were a big hit and it was fantastic to see the wheels in the students’ brains turning. It is great to see our students exposed to new and different challenges and how they all adapt to this.”

At The Henley College, our fantastic academic staff are always looking to bring in engaging guest speakers to truly motivate our students and create the best learning environment possible for them. If this sounds like a setting that would suit you, please click here to sign up to our next open event where you can find out more about the amazing opportunities we offer our students.