
Careers & Employability - Aims
Careers Education Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG)

The CEIAG Department, in close liaison with the Northern Ireland Careers Service (Department of Employment and Learning) works towards:
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Enabling our students to develop the skills necessary to make informed decisions about their education and training and employment options based on self-awareness, understanding of the relevance of their education, skills and experiences and awareness of the available pathways and opportunities (locally, nationally and internationally).
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Providing our students with the opportunities and experiences to develop essential employability and life skills in order to become effective citizens and employees.
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Ensuring that our students have access to good quality career education, information, advice and guidance, tailored to their individual needs, so that they are able to make informed choices.
Work Experience
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Year 12 and Year 13 pupils participate in a Work Experience Programme. . They are carefully prepared beforehand and receive a visit from a member of staff during their week's work experience.
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At the end of the placement, the employer provides a written report about each participant. The pupils are encouraged to assess their own performance and use it to inform their career choice.
Outline of Programmes
Students are introduced to personal career planning in Year 10 which involves the process of target setting, action planning, researching and reviewing career options.
This is revisited on an on-going basis along with the provision of formal Careers Education lessons in Years 12 & 13.
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During this time, students participate in seminars, work-related experiences and activities exploring the ever-changing labour market.
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Year 10 and Year 12 along with all staff head out on industry visits during our annual “Insight into Industry” Day.
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Year 8-14 attend our talks and workshops during our annual “Employability Skills” Week and STEAM Week.
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Yr 12 and Yr 13 have an opportunity to engage in work-experience organised in liaison with School Employer Connections.
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All pupils in Years 10, 12, 13 and 14 have a careers guidance interview.
“Young people need support and assistance to become effective career decision-makers, making the choices that will lead them on to further or higher education, training and, ultimately, employment.”
Here at St. Cecilia’s College we recognise that a high quality careers provision can raise our students’ aspirations, awareness and motivation to achieve.
Preparing students to become life-long learners is one of our main aims in the school’s mission statement and it’s embedded in our whole school ethos and school development plan. We want students to leave with the qualifications, employability skills, mindset and work related experiences that will ultimately make them more employable!
We aim to:
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provide pupils with a broad and balanced curriculum that will enable them to pursue progression pathways which match their interests and aspirations;
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equip pupils with the employability skills required for future working lives through a range of opportunities and experiences;
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instil a commitment to lifelong learning in each pupil which is essential in the twenty first century world of work;
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empower pupils to plan and manage their future careers.
Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance is provided by specialist Head of Careers Ms Conaty, Careers Teachers, Subject Teachers, Form Teachers and external Careers Advisers from the Careers Service of the Department for Learning and Employment (DELNI). St. Cecilia’s pupils also benefit from the experience and expertise of other external providers, including businesses, organisations, professionals, employers and other education and training providers.