Work Experience
FACT! Young people are more likely to be successful in their job hunt if they have undertaken #workexperience.
The evidence? Over 50% of graduate recruiters that took part in a recent research study said: “Graduates who have had no previous work experience are unlikely to be successful during the selection process and have little chance of receiving a job offer.”
Students often think the only point of doing #workexperience is to fill up their resume and they’ll just end up twiddling their thumbs or stuffing envelopes… but in fact, a Year 10 Work Experience placement is invaluable!
It not only helps them identify their passions and skills early on, enabling them to follow a career pathway closely aligned with their natural skillset, interests, and abilities, it is also the best way for them to get a real sense of their chosen industry. They can speak to employees, ask them questions, and it shows future employers they are motivated to get into that chosen career.
Equally, for students not sure what career they want to follow, work experience is a perfect way to sample all the options out there and explore different jobs without committing to anything. By undertaking a variety of different work placements, students can also get a good understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses.
So, #workexperience really does matter. But how do students secure it? One way is through the school’s #CareerAdvisor, another is through the school’s #AlumniCommunity. Alumni can support their old high school in many ways, giving their time, experience, scholarships etc. and also through offering work experience placements. Which is precisely what Fairhills High School Knox alumni Danielle Rule, Director at Mountain Gate Eyecare did last month!
Danielle welcomed Year 10 student Elissa P for a fantastic week-long placement learning all about the medical, customer, and business side of running an optician business, before returning to campus on Monday to speak to Year 9 students in an Ourschool ‘Work Experience’ focussed alumni session. She was joined by four Year 10 students who had recently completed their work experience placements, (Elissa P being one), and they shared their experiences with the current Year 9 cohort who will be undertaking their own placements next year.
It was incredibly insightful for the Year 9 students to hear from their peers about their recent placements in Teaching, Retail, Veterinary and Health (Optical), and to also hear from the perspective of a Fairhills alumni business owner who had generously offered a placement.
Thank you so much Danni, for being so kind and providing a Fairhills student an insight into the working world, and for sharing your skills and experience into running your own successful business with us too. Please come back and celebrate with us next year for Fairhills 50 Year Anniversary Celebrations!
Are you a former Fairhills student?
Sally, our Alumni Program Coordinator has been working hard this year developing a wonderful Alumni program for the school, including:
- Finding and connecting with Fairhills alumni by creating FHS alumni Facebook and LinkedIn groups, (links below).
- Inviting alumni back to school to inspire students about study and career pathways and encourage them to connect with them via the FHS alumni LinkedIn group.
- Creating opportunities for Year 10 students by asking FHS alumni if they can provide work experience placements.
- Inviting alumni to provide support for their old school via sponsoring the school Breakfast Club, Basketball Team or even setting up a student scholarship.
If you are a former student of Fairhills High School, Sally would love to hear from you – please send an email to: alumni@fairhillshs.vic.edu.au
Also, check out our Alumni Facebook https://www.facebook.com/FairhillsHighSchoolKnoxAlumni
