I first had contact with the National Careers Service when I went to Go Train for an employability course. I’ve spoken with my adviser a number of times since then – face-to-face and over the phone.
“I.T was a real barrier for me”
My adviser helped me to get my CV and cover letter up to scratch. She also gave me advice around my education because IT was a real barrier for me. My ability level was really low, and we talked about how many more options would be open to me if I could improve my IT skills. We also discussed how work experience and volunteering could be really good paths to take while I was job searching. This was because getting out into the workplace would improve my confidence and give me experience to put on my CV. In turn that would help me to secure interviews.
We developed an Action Plan to pull all of our ideas together and identify the next steps I should take. This led to me enrolling on an online course for IT computing. Once I’ve completed that, I want to enrol onto a Business Management and Human Resources course. Both of those will give me a really good foundation for office work.
“It’s really helped me to build my skills”
I managed to secure a work experience placement at a local training company as an administrator. I’ve since been referred to the HR department for a possible role by some of my colleagues. I’ve also been volunteering as an administrator with a local charity, which has really helped me to build my skills and get some great experience for my CV. I have a few interviews coming up, which I’m really excited about.
If I hadn’t contacted the National Careers Service I would probably be sitting on my backside at home feeling sorry for myself. I wouldn’t have an up to date CV with my new work experience and volunteering experiences to add to it. And I wouldn’t be feeling half as confident as I do now.
The National Careers Service provides free careers information, advice and guidance to anyone aged 13 and upwards.
To speak to a National Careers Service adviser, call 0800 100 900 or use our webchat (8am to 10pm, 7 days a week)
