Work Experience

Wycombe Abbey encourages girls to undertake work experience to complement their studies, usually in UV and above. The purpose of work experience is to give an insight into the world of work, its disciplines and relationships. In addition, girls have the opportunity to put into practice some of the skills learnt at School. Work experience is not necessarily to be regarded as a means of testing out a future career but rather as a way of broadening the girls' views of career opportunities and of the variety of skills involved in them. The outcome of work experience is always positive: girls can learn as much by discovering that they do not wish to follow a certain career path as by confirming a passion. Although work experience is not a necessary prerequisite for all university courses it can give considerable weight to a student's application – especially in the competitive fields of medicine, veterinary medicine and law. There is a huge demand for quality work experience but the School has many excellent contacts and experience in helping girls to find interesting and beneficial placements. We are always very keen to find new placement opportunities and if you are a parent or Senior who could offer such experiences we would very much like to hear from you! Please email Paul Kelly, Careers Guidance and Work Experience Co-ordinator, on kellyp@wycombeabbey.com.

Last summer, over 50 girls in LVI and UVI went out on work experience placements. These ranged from working at a publishing company, to experiencing life in top businesses such as IBM, through to the opportunity to observe at first hand high level scientific research projects. The girls have told us how valuable they found their experiences; here is what some of them had to say…

 

I had the opportunity to do work experience in an international radio station in London. I got to work in all different aspects of radio including sitting in on several radio broadcasts, working in their charities offices, the marketing offices and going out to Trafalgar Square and asking members of the public what their favourite song was!

I realised from my week that there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes of Radio rather than just the voice of a presenter and it broadened my knowledge of the world of radio and media. I took away great memories and experiences and I hope that I will be able to go back next year.

Issy

 

I spent eight days doing work experience at a Museum in Winchester. I was lucky as I happened to start just before the opening of the summer exhibition, ‘Faith, Food & Fashion in Nepal', so was given all sorts of exciting jobs like researching and writing the information for the displays, and contacting newspapers and radio stations to persuade them to cover the exhibition opening. Everything came together in time for the big day which was a great success, with the exhibition being opened by the Nepali Ambassador, and several journalists and photographers turning up at the last minute! During the rest of the week I had a chance to help with the more everyday museum tasks, which were no less interesting. Over the whole week I don't think I was bored once, and I was surprised by just how rewarding my time there was.

Alison

 

Georgina and I attended the Work Experience Programme at a prestigious international technology firm based on the South Bank in London. During my week of work experience, I shadowed several members of the company and listened to inspiring presentations. The highlight of the week was working on a group project (Smarter Planet), which involved creating a product that leads to a smarter life. Not only did it develop our innovation and technical skills, but it also taught us about teamwork and filled us with team spirit.

The programme gave me a real insight into the company. Talking to many wise and talented people who work there helped me to understand the vast opportunities available.

Cathy

 

I spent a week doing work experience at an Equine Veterinary Practice. I am applying to read veterinary medicine at university and work experience is a required part of the application - mainly because the course is so long that it is important to be sure that this is what you want to do! I spent the week going out on calls with two vets, and observing their work on the horses. It was fascinating to see some of the treatments I had read about being put into practice in front of me, and the vets were always happy to explain what they hoped to achieve through their medication. The experience was not only interesting, but also motivating. I have finished the week able to confidently speak about equine medicine for interview, and excited at the thought that one day I will be able to use the skills I observed.

Olivia

 

I did some work experience at a Scientific Research Laboratory in Oxfordshire. I helped with the experiments that were being carried out by visiting university PhD students on the Sandals (Small Angle Neutron Diffractometer for Liquids and Amorphous Samples) and XRD (X-ray Diffractometer) machines. These machines are used to investigate the composition of glasses, with the aim of discovering new compounds with the ideal properties for such uses as storing radioactive waste. As well as helping set up experiments, I analysed collected data using a specially designed computer programme called GudrunX which is only available to the lab users. The Laboratory has a number of different departments which all work in different areas of Physics. I was shown round some of these, such as the Space Science and Particle Physics departments. I learned a lot during my week, both about the working life of a Physicist and the actual Physics itself.

Catriona

 

I was very fortunate to be accepted by a Publishing Company for a week of work experience. The work I was given included writing an introduction to an interview with Colin Firth, condensing a three page article into 200 words and ordering in catalogues. My favourite task was researching and compiling a new list for the luxury travel gadgets and goodies section for a travel magazine. This was very rewarding as some of my ideas were used in the actual magazine! I also had an afternoon with the design team which I thoroughly enjoyed. They talked me through what they do and showed me publications they were working on. I found it fascinating and was shown how to use the specialist software and create my own feature page spread.

The atmosphere in the office was cheerful and relaxed even though everyone was very busy. I had a very enjoyable week which gave me an insight into the magazine, publishing and advertising worlds, and helped me form a clearer idea of where my future may lie.

Alice