Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

I'm really surprised this section doesn't get used more.
Any suggestions/ideas how we can get more interest and exchange of advice/support/work experience etc. etc.?

With the CHA currently beginning to re-look at the whole Careers Network stuff, it would be worth thinking about how it should all work, and what would make it thrive?

Well, regarding the Pupils side of it...

I think one main reason is that relatively few pupils know of or use the forum, and thus aren't aware of opportunities available. The paradox, as ever, is that in it's present form, the topic is hardly enough to satisfy the requests of entire yeargroups... I mean, I've suggested to a few other pupils to look on the forum as a good start, but should Mr Stannard be suggesting it to the entire yeargroup? Would this raise issues of vetting (of opportunities AND pupils!), in that the school would presumably then be responsible if anything, god forbid, were to go wrong?

To those in the know, how are attempts to develop the careers network proceeding?

Mark1 wrote:Well, regarding the Pupils side of it...

I think one main reason is that relatively few pupils know of or use the forum, and thus aren't aware of opportunities available. The paradox, as ever, is that in it's present form, the topic is hardly enough to satisfy the requests of entire yeargroups... I mean, I've suggested to a few other pupils to look on the forum as a good start, but should Mr Stannard be suggesting it to the entire yeargroup? Would this raise issues of vetting (of opportunities AND pupils!), in that the school would presumably then be responsible if anything, god forbid, were to go wrong?

To those in the know, how are attempts to develop the careers network proceeding?

Slowly, I'm afraid, but it is a priority. There are issues concerning the development of the CHA database which need to be sorted out before the network can be properly relaunched.

We also need to look at how it can be made to work in conjunction with the school's own careers service.

The information which is currently held by the CHA, such as the lists of people who are willing to offer help and advice, and in which fields, probably needs to be thoroughly checked and brought up to date.

It would also be useful to be in a position to offer more help and advice to Old Blues who are thinking of moving to work overseas. It would be nice to have a network of people who could offer advice about local business practices, documentation requirements and other issues facing those who wish to relocate.

Anyway, we're trying to get some improvements in place in time for Old Blues Day.

In the meantime, as Julian suggests, the forum is here to be used. Its effectiveness will obviously be limited by the relatively small percentage of Old Blues who are regular visitors here. However, this number continues to grow, and if the forum was seen to be working as a place to offer and receive careers advice then the number of users might increase more rapidly.

jtaylor wrote:I'm really surprised this section doesn't get used more.
Any suggestions/ideas how we can get more interest and exchange of advice/support/work experience etc. etc.?

From a recent leaver point of view, most recent leavers who are currently at university are actively seeking work experience and internships to boost CV's for potential graduate roles. To achieve this successfully the most viable route is usually through graduate recruitment sites like milkround.com. And without requests it is unlikely offers of help would be posted on the site.

I think as has been said its mainly due to a lack of knowledge/awareness of the site.

As a recent graduate i KNOW that many people are seeking advice and career opportunities and know that the old blues are out there but not necessarily how to contact them.

The best way i can think is to link this up to facebook if thats possible? Its somewhere where pretty much ALL recent and probably most old old blues are certain to be found.

Maybe recent forum discussions could appear on an old blues careers group on fb? Or at least the link could be posted on the old blues page to gather more support.

Im only just new to the site so im not sure if this is already done but email notifications on topics that you've posted in or topics that may be of interest are a good way to keep reminding members of the site and to ensure its regular use.
I know that the reason I use prospects or targets job sites so often is due to the regular emails I receive.

Hopefully this problem will be solved as i know that i and many others would find any help/advice and career opportunities invaluable!!

Thanks.