Year 10 Work Experience

[crisscross101]

AIBU or is this a total waste of time/unnecessary 2 weeks out of school?

DD is Y10, attends a selective state school that is always in top 10 of exam results league tables so will likely end up with 7-9s across the board at GCSE then off to a RG university. She wants to read law at the moment but that might change.

She had to do two weeks work experience in June. Her friends are spending a couple of weeks at mum's private practice or Dad's GP surgery, a couple who are 'less connected' are going back to their primaries for a couple of weeks despite no interest in teaching. No local solicitors are accepting WE round here due to hybrid working and the fact they are not in the office 60% of the time. DH is a manual worker and I work in a confidential environment meaning that DD couldn't come to work with me. So we're now on the beg for a work experience placement that has no bearing in any event to DD's career aspirations...

She's been looking for a Saturday job- to get proper work experience!- for over a year and no one takes kids in now until they're 16 (she's a summer baby so won't be 16 until after her GCSEs in Y11). (Other than a paper round which I've said no to on safety grounds).

This feels a completely waste of time that she'd be better off at school or on a school trip! I just feel so cross that nepotism starts before they've even left school

I think it's difficult because as others have said, Y10 WE builds soft skills like confidence, customer service, interpersonal skills, organisation, etc which are useful in a range of fields. In some cases it may even open a student's eyes to something they hadn't considered before. In others, it may show then what they don't want to do!

But I also agree with the difficulty of finding placements - so many places cannot now take under 16s due to insurance, or have moved to hybrid working, or simply don't want the hassle. In a rural area, there's also the issue of students getting to placement e.g. we know a local riding stables who will take y10s on work experience, which at least is something some of them will enjoy, but not everyone can get there or be picked up at the right times.

We now only do WE for Y12, which is a shame, but at least they can all usually find a placement doing something (although some of them still say it's very hard to find anything relevant). They can also often travel more independently which helps!

It would be great if more local employers were willing to facilitate it/sort it.

On a somewhat related note, I think it's why T-levels will never work. It's hard enough finding a week's placement, let alone 40 days!

Thing is h&s means most companies can't take yr12 never mind yr10. Madness.

I loved work experience. Although I didn’t go to a place that linked to future career goals I was sent to a local Superdrug. I learned lots from the people that I worked with regarding dealing with members of the public, inventory, using tills…I got a job with them after my GCSE’s ended over summer and had a Saturday job during A levels and half term which meant that I was able to earn money and not rely on my parents which was great. I think universities will care just as much about working and earning money as working somewhere linked directly to a job. Let’s me honest they know that not everyone has access to work experience linked to what they are studying.

I think a combination of working from home and greater awareness of safeguarding has really made work experience very challenging to organise for this age group.

Oh, I hear you OP. I faced similar struggles myself with journalism, in Yr 10, up north. The only kid that got a place on the scheme was not interested in working for a paper but had a connected parent. It was a tough school, few parents in professional jobs for example - including mine, so somehow the school generated a list of local placements with willing sponsors (who essentially needed a pair of hands for free). So, I worked for a (shoddy) hotel in the kitchen and as waiting staff. However, with hindsight, I should have spun that experience to my advantage and for the sake of the UCAS form. What if perhaps, your DD uses her time in the local primary school to assess an aspect of law practice within the school, and how it impacts society/law? I don’t know, safeguarding issues, GDPR. The point is she’s using her experience to analyse her potential impact if she were to be accepted on her law course - showing critical thinking. Much more powerful than someone who simply attended a law practice due to connections. But I absolutely hear you, and it’s a life lesson to challenge the status quo to be on top. Just my thoughts and good luck to your DD. Attitude is key.

A lot of companies who are running work experience in my city will only take students with a high score for widening participation. So all the students that will get the good placement are BAME, pupil premium, never had a parent go to university. It's actually the white middle class ones who struggle. But then you're right in the sense that the ones with contacts will always get a decent placement.

Have a look at spring pod and speakers for schools. They are online but sometimes pretty good ones come up.

I did work experience in year 10 in 1992 at the magistrates courts, I was based with the clerks, it was absolutely brilliant, I still remember it, I then did another lot of work experience in a shop which was also good experience.
My daughter is year 10, her passion is textiles and dressmaking so we are wondering if she can get work experience in a wedding dress shop as loads near us.

Agreed, but I don't think many people are getting those experiences at 14. Most of the medicine shadowing schemes are for year 12 for example. So this year 10 work experience isn't the be all and end all. And actually many healthcare courses have said they really value the wider skills of customer service etc as well. In an ideal world it would be great to get a start on sometimes career related, but the softer skills are just as important.

In fact if you're in Manchester or if anyone is in Manchester and wants their kid to do work experience in a legal aid law firm I know who to contact. If they're under 16 they won't be allowed to go to court but other than that they can see what kind of things solicitors do.

I don't know of anyone who had the word count available on their personal statement for their year ten work experience.

My oldest also wants to be a lawyer although she went to a RI state school and did her year ten work experience in a completely unrelated field (in a castle).

It didn't get a look in in her personal statement as they are mostly about the subject rather than your achievements.

It’s bad enough in year 12, year 10WE is ridiculous- DD would’ve been 14 still.
I got both year 12 WE through connections but it wasn’t easy. The first (more relevant) lot fell through because one person left the company and the other cos ds had to isolate. Both DCs had totally irrelevant WE in the eve, DS’s had to be online. They both ended up doing programming (Python) which they enjoyed but it wasn't particularly enriching!!

Have a look at virtual work experience. A quick Google comes up with lots for law.

This one would only take about 2 days but others may be longer or work combined with a different, in person, work experience.

But you've said you want her to have a part time job, so that kind of thing probably will be the reality of work for her some of the time?

Why should it be expected that she should get relevant experience for law, but that she should just be able to walk into a retail / hospitality type job with no experience? I realise they are less competitive, but she will probably be up against people with experience of some sort, and I don't really see why those employers are any less entitled to look for staff who have made the effort to develop their skills and gain experience than law employers are?

Although my children were very lucky with their work experience due to our connections, I agree with you OP. I also agree with the poster who said it’s very difficult to organise in today’s world with working from home and health and safety. I think the schools should have some connections so they can assist children to find work experience. It’s easy to say it’s part of the experience to find your own work experience, when everyone knows most kids get something from their parents having connections.

I did work experience for a week in Topshop and got a good Saturday/holiday job off the back of it without having to interview or anything. It was useful for me in that sense, although definitely free labour for the shop for that week. Seemed more productive than a week photocopying in a solicitor’s office which is what the standard middle class work experience seemed to be at the time.

I can just see the OPs post in 7 or so years time......

"DD has finished her degree in law at Uni and has been back at home now since last July. She's not contributing to the household costs because she can't find a job in law...."

Rest of MN "she needs to get a job doing anything, for the experience and for money...."

OP "but she wants to work in law WAAAAAAAA"

me too!

Dc1 got some experience with a local charity (nothing to do with what he wanted to do) ended up being offered payed work. Are there any charities local to you? Lots of places won't be able to take under 16s on because of insurance. Dcs secondary school have stopped doing it and do careers days in school instead.
Some of dc1 friends got experience in places where they could get part time jobs - local cafes, hairdressers, small shops. Was good for a reference for some if nothing else.
When I did w/e school selected where we went and I was sent to an office the only good thing was I knew I didn't want to work in an office so I got something out of it.

@crisscross101
I think you are looking at this wrongly
Work experience is about the stuff that school doesn't teach you (which is a lot) and opens kids eyes up to aspects of life they haven't directly experienced before.
Yes some will find it easier than others to find something to do but all experiences have value including the difficulty of finding WE in the first place - it will be an eye opener as to what is to come (some people will have job opportunities that others won't upon qualification too)
Just because a WE placement may not be directly in what your kid is interested doesn't make it less value.
Cast the net wide - lots of businesses have applicable skills & experience which would add value to your childs journey in law - not just lawyers.
I always wanted to be an architect but as a child I did WE at a construction firm & a bank offices - I learnt a lot about what I did and didn't want to do in those experiences.

Our son is looking for WE placements atm too - it's hard and some places won't take them but there are still plenty out there if you look hard enough (and that are not 'just' in the hairdresser or corner shop)

Back in the dark ages when I did work experience I manage to get into a local firm of solicitors ( I also wanted a career in law). That week made me question my choice ... I set up another WE in the holidays with the crown prosecution service which confirmed that law was not for me.

WE can be as useful in working out what you don't want to do.

Agree that 2 weeks is a long time, local schools only do 1 week, but they do provide access to opportunities locally for firms who have worked with students, My daughter wrote lots of emails and letters to get a place. She has also set up work experience with a local accountancy firm in her holidays ( only 2 days) but on the back of that had an interview for an apprenticeship and has a job offer.

I think you are quite short sighted and not seeing the bigger picture!

Year 10 work experience is not for swanning around as a mini lawyer as others have said it's a introduction to the world of work, it's about showing up on time, building confidence and lots of general soft skills. You'd be surprised how little admissions officers care about it tbh. Any summer job would demonstrate your daughter to be hardworking etc. she will gain little knowledge of law from a one week placement. She could learn this content in a summer school programme- lots of unis run this.

She will have a better chance to get experience in law settings once she's past 16. I would strongly recommend doing this. An admissions officer will be much more impressed with a 16-17 year old doing work experience in their summer holidays anyway than a 14 year old who sat around in Daddy's law firm making tea and scrolling on their phone. I would use this is a opportunity to help her get a proper paid job, which is in turn will help her get other opportunities in law-relates fields further than the line and help her get more out of those experiences.

I completely agree with you that the nepotism is very sad indeed!

My son, only 15 years old when he did his yr 10 work experience, had no idea what he wanted to do after his GCSEs. He managed to get a placement with the local council with the electricians. He loved it. Later he applied for an apprenticeship with them and was accepted. He is still with them at 33 years old. He met lots of trainee electricians while on college courses who were very capable on the theory side of things but found it very difficult to get a practical placement to complete their training. Not relevant to your situation op but may be helpful to others.
I don’t know, but maybe the council would offer placements in other areas which could prove useful. Housing, for instance. Housing officers deal with clients and work with other organisations such as the police, social services, child protection and the courts in their day to day jobs. This could give some insight into how the law operates in regards to housing. I wonder if Social Services would offer work experience?

I have a son in year 10 who wants to eventually work on a field where it's difficult to find work experience. The best advice I received was to contact local universities and ask to shadow a professor in the relevant department. It worked and hrs now looking forward to a really exciting placement. Might be worth a shot for your daughter

WE is deathly dull.
I spent my 2 weeks in a day nursery - which isn't a million miles off, as I'm now a primary school teacher. But I find nursery deathly dull!
My DH did his at Boots - he's now a social worker
My sister did hers in the office of a solicitors - she does computer systems for the police.
My best friend worked at an opticians, and she's now a pharmacist.

We won’t take year 10 for work experience due to insurance and the demands the schools place on us, some of our staff are DBS checked, but not all.

when DS wanted work experience I was filling in the forms for him to work at DH’s business (where he already worked weekends) but the paperwork demands were intrusive, and DH was only going to do it so DS had a placement. In the end we told the school it wasn’t possible and the school found him a placement in the local special needs school.