Our final blog of this year’s T Level Week sees us speak to Liam, who is studying Management and Administration at South Essex College – hear about Liam’s progress, skills he’s acquired and his top tips below:
“I’m studying a Business and Administration T Level at South Essex College. As a part of this course I was required to choose a work placement that aligned with my academic learning.
When looking for placement opportunities, I came across a Communication T level role at Essex County Council (ECC). This appealed to me at the time as I was interested in pursuing a career in digital marketing and thought this role would give me a “foot in the door”.
Since starting my placement, my ambitions have shifted, but ECC has been very flexible and presented new opportunities to find out what I am interested in.
My T Levels experience has exceeded my expectations. At first, I thought it was a chance to gain experience within an office environment, however, it has enabled me to develop practical skills which I can bring along with me in my next steps.
Overtime, I have shifted my mindset as I recognised the value of skills I gained. These are invaluable and can be transferable to any other job role.
Liam, T Level Student
I have also had the opportunity to network with many colleagues from across the organisation. Working in an office was a new environment for me and I was initially nervous about talking to other officers about their roles. I learned that it is important to throw yourself into new and challenging environments as this will help to quickly build your confidence. This is a transferable skill for the future and will be useful when I am thrown into an unfamiliar environment.”
Skills I’ve built during my time at ECC:
“Some of the most useful skills I’ve gained during my placement have been:
- effective communication
- working well within a team
- leading projects
- Microsoft Office skills
- Research skills
These skills will be useful in any industry and will enhance my college study too.”
Overcoming challenges:
“As this is my first office experience, I have found motivation hard at times due to the combination of being uncertain of what I want to do next and not particularly enjoying the office setting. Overtime, I have shifted my mindset as I recognised the value of skills I gained. These are invaluable and can be transferable to any other job role.
I have also had to work hard on developing my confidence. To overcome my initial worries, my line manager connected me to a range of colleagues to help me enhance my networking skills. It is important to communicate with others to better understand your own interests and priorities and learn new skills and knowledge that will be beneficial to your role.”
Next steps and future achievements:
“At the end of my placement, I aim to have developed a wide variety of effective skills to use in my future career. I hope to go into an A&R (Artists and Repertoire) role in the music industry and have developed many during my work placement to support a future application.”
My top tips:
- It is okay to not know what you want to do. With time, you will figure out your interests and this can shape your career.
- Make sure to do plenty of research into the types of work placement offered to you.
- Keep on going. The skills and networking offered to you through your T Levels are invaluable: skills you have learned and people you connected with will come in handy in the future.
- Listen to people around you and to other T Level student’s experiences. People will support you and give you advice, but it is important to make your own informed decision.
Interested in doing a T Level course? Your local college may be able to support you. Our Entry to Work team may also be able to help also, you can get in touch with our award-winning team by email at work.placements@essex.gov.uk
We’ve shared a number of other T Level blogs too – you can view these on our blogs page.
Our Entry to Work team have their own page, you can see this here.
