Preparation is key
May 19, 2021
When looking for a new employment opportunity, do you ever consider if you are really ready for the application process?
Having the excitement, determination and passion to find a new job, as well as possessing the skills and capability to meet the requirements of that job can be an exhilarating time for any job seeker. But there is a journey to undertake first to get to that all important stage of having secured
the job and getting stuck in.
Just like the Scouts’ motto ‘Be Prepared’, the first stage of seeking out employment needs to be preparing to apply
for employment.
At Ways into Work we recognised that some of our clients, who often had never been in paid work, whilst very prepared and capable of doing a specific job, were not fully prepared for the process of actually applying for jobs. Ultimately this was significantly hindering their chances of getting to or past the interview stage.
Having identified our clients’ need for greater support in preparing for their employment journey, the Employment Preparation Course
(EPC) was born! Since running the first course in October 2020, it has been very successful; we have run 9 separate courses, each 10 sessions long and prepared
87 individuals for their employment journey.
The EPC course covers very current and relevant content, ranging from understanding the current job market to how to approach an online interview, as well as outlining the benefits of work and a positive work ethic. The course is held remotely online, making it accessible to our clients from the comfort of their homes during the pandemic, as well as building their confidence on video calls.
The 10 sessions layer up week by week all the skills required to be successful in obtaining employment. Topics lead to a realistic style mock online interview – conducted and arranged by one of our Employment Coaches not known to the client. This really mimics the process of arranging and attending a real interview. Feedback is then given to each attendee on every aspect, from how they presented themselves in the video interview, to how they answered the questions and how they approached the initial interview set up communication.
The EPC has provided our clients with so much more than an opportunity to upskill and prepare for work; we experience firsthand how the individual’s confidence grows week on week and how they learn to enjoy interacting in group situations.
More about what content the EPC covers can be found on our flyer - download here.
Photo by Samantha Borges
on Unsplash
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An incredible good news story from one of our clients, who explains how the support from us has changed her life and helped her get her dream job!
When Rajpal first became a client at Ways into Work he had been struggling with looking for work and a good job match. Rajpal has a mild learning disability and mental health issues and had not worked for over ten years except to help now and then at his family’s supermarket. He had not worked for such a long time as he was not well enough to think about his career and life choices. When he joined Ways into Work as a Job Seeker and was assigned an Employment Coach who spent a long time getting to know him, doing a vocational profile and job matching. It was decided that the best first step was for Rajpal was to experience what different jobs and roles are like and what they would entail. Ways into Work then supported him in applying for various roles in retail and did mock interviews where he gained lots of practice. He secured a few interviews but was not offered any of the jobs. Rajpal had begun taking an interest in going to the gym and informed his Employment Coach that he would like a job at the gym. After approaching the employer, his Employment Coach secured an interview for him. He was so happy that at the interview when asked why he would like to work at the gym, he pulled out of his pocket a handwritten lengthy list of reasons why he liked the job and the skills he had to offer. This showed the employer his passion for the job and Rajpal was offered the job, working 3 days (24 hours) a week to begin with. As the leisure centre was 7 miles away, his Employment Coach supported him with applying for Access To Work transport to and from work. They also taught him and his parents how to claim his monthly ATW transport and supported him with the change of circumstances in his benefits. When Rajpal first started to work at the Leisure Centre he solely worked in the gym and his role included ensuring that all the equipment was working and clean, as well as dealing with lots of customer enquiries. This was quite a challenge for Rajpal to begin with, as it was a large premise and no two days were the same. With Job Coaching , Ways into Work was able to support Rajpal by helping to create a routine for him and also discussing with his supervisor a way of building new tasks into his days as the weeks progressed.
