Skip navigation
Search
Search

Latest from the blogs

Frequently asked questions: UKCAT Admissions Test

Tue 6 November 2018 - 15:59

By UKCAT in Applicant

What is the UKCAT?

The UKCAT (UK Clinical Aptitude Test) is a test used in the selection process by the majority of UK university medical and dental schools.

It is a 2 hour, computer-based test, which is sat in Pearson VUE test centres across the UK and worldwide. The test consists of 5 separately timed subtests which are designed to test the cognitive abilities, attitudes, and behaviours considered to be valuable for healthcare professionals.

Who needs to sit the UKCAT?

Most UK universities require applicants to medicine and...

Changing lives and getting paid for it – Pranav Patel

Mon 4 October 2021 - 15:43

By Pranav Patel in Teacher Training

 

I want to share with you my journey into teaching. An honest version of this journey because in this career you will face different challenges to any other career you undertake. Never doubt however that this is the best undertaking you will ever have.

My name’s Pran and I’m currently a Lead Practitioner in an inner London academy. The son of two immigrant parents, one from the West Indian state of Gujrat and the other hailing from the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

After graduating from the University of Birmingham with a Bachelor of Science in Physics, I flittered from a variety of career options until, by chance, I ended up supporting in a secondary school for a day. At this point for me it clicked. I’m changing lives and getting paid for it, does it get any better than this?

Born in a typically British Asian household I was always pushed to excel; be successful in every aspect of my life from academia to career. The...

Getting behaviour right from the start – Tom Bennett

Tue 6 November 2018 - 16:06

By Tom Bennett in Teacher Training

 

Anyone who wants to be a teacher should know this: getting behaviour right from the start is one of the most important things you can do. If you hope they'll behave, good luck. Maybe they will. Maybe some will. And maybe they won't and you'll need to know what to do. In-school training can be patchy. If you're lucky you'll find a school that knows how to train you in the craft of classroom management. Or maybe you won't; maybe your training schools will be civil and ordered and you won't see what it is that makes that happen.

I investigated behaviour training in 2015 for the Department for Education, and in 2016 we published our guidelines about what a new teacher should know in order to be 'classroom ready'. Running a room isn't a small part of our jobs - it's an essential component. Without...

Why is identifying estranged young people in HE crucial?

Mon 24 October 2022 - 14:15

There are hundreds of thousands of young people who have a difficult and unsupportive relationship with their family in the UK. For many, family problems subside as children grow to become independent adults, and make their way to university. But for those students with family problems which grow and develop into wider rifts, the journey through school and into higher education is not always a smooth transition.

Estranged young people have no contact, support, and/or approval from their family. Our research shows there are three common causes of family estrangements, which can leave young people with no choice but to go it alone.

Families may experience mismatched values and beliefs between generations, where the choices a young person makes do not fit with the rigid expectations or traditions of the family unit. A common cause is persistent abuse, and particularly emotional abuse, where a young person does not receive the emotional validation, positivity, love, and...

How a UK Degree Can Boost Your Career Opportunities

Tue 6 November 2018 - 16:01

By UCAS in UCAS advice

The main reason for anyone attending university is to get one step further to achieving their desired career. It’s important to attend a university where you are not only taught skills for future jobs in your studies, but also to learn from new cultural experiences, friendships, social life, and the everyday independency that may be new to you. Studying abroad allows you to learn these skills on another level, and why not do that in the country that is home to top English-...

From application to induction – Dave Stephenson

Thu 3 October 2019 - 12:10

By Dave Stephenson in Teacher Training

 

In December 2015 I was working as Assistant Inclusion Manager in a secondary school within the West Yorkshire Teaching Alliance. I enjoyed this role immensely but knew that moving into the classroom was the way forward. I had been contemplating applying for the Schools Direct training programme for some time and had enough in-school experience to feel confident in my application. With the encouragement of my colleagues, I submitted my application on the last day of term before Christmas.

The application process was swift and expertly facilitated by Clare, West Yorkshire Teaching Alliance Manager, and Heidi, Initial Teacher Training Secondary Manager. On the first day back after the Christmas holiday, I was required to deliver a twenty minute lesson in my chosen subject (History) before sitting down with Clare and Heidi for an interview. Prior to planning my mini-lesson, I found out which year group I would be working...

My biggest achievement so far – Lucian Huxley-Smith

Tue 6 November 2018 - 16:05

By Lucian Huxley-Smith in Teacher Training

The moment when I smiled the widest was when I got a child to write for the first time I'd ever seen them write. After three months of trying to get them to write. That was my biggest achievement so far, I think.

Coming into teaching I thought that, if I didn't provide every student I met with a C or with the highest grade they can possibly get, I'd be failing, and I've soon realised that's not necessarily the case at all. If you can get that person who's never picked up a pen in front of you to pick up a pen and write, then you've achieved something huge. If you can get across the importance of a comma or a full-stop to someone who's previously not even understood what those concepts are, that's huge. You are making a difference to people's lives potentially on a daily basis, and that's massive.

We all remember our best teachers from school and, when you're in the bubble of teaching, it’s very easy to forget that you could be that teacher...

Five tips for preparing a UCAS personal statement – what every parent needs to know

Thu 4 July 2019 - 12:10

By Dr Sharon Parry in Parents

This is the part of the university application process which causes a great deal of stress to teens – not to mention distress to their parents, who may not feel in the mood for an in-depth analysis of their son/daughter’s career prospects when they are trying to cook tea or put out the bins!

The truth is, we are ill-equipped to give that advice, and therefore need to be careful what we say. This time last year, I was going through the personal statement process with my eldest daughter, so I thought I’d share my thoughts and experiences just in case you are going through the same right now.

The UCAS personal statement
I started off full of optimism that I would be a great asset to my daughter as she prepared this extraordinary piece of writing. It wasn’t long before she had to point out my paragraphs were peppered with clichés, and I over-used the word ‘passionate’ –...

Exam stress season

Fri 18 March 2022 - 11:26

By After the Playground in Parents

Dr Sharon Parry is a writer and editor of lifestyle blog @aftertheplayground. She is a Mum of three daughters who loves to write about the parenting, health and emotional challenges that parents face as their children need them less constantly.

Prior to establishing a writing career, Sharon was a Research Fellow in Public Health and has a PhD in Epidemiology.

I have been supporting my children through public examinations for nearly a decade and I’ve still got two years to go! Even within my own family, I have discovered that each child is very different in terms of what they need from me at this stage of their lives, and I have to learn to adapt to that!

So, here are the steps I...

Meningitis in students – what you need to know

Thu 9 May 2019 - 09:49

By After the Playground in Parents

In the frenzy of excitement and emotion between A level results and a young adult leaving for university, it is unlikely that vaccinations will be one of your priorities. I hope this blog post will change that. There is a new meningitis vaccine available for young adults, and you will have to book an appointment with your GP practice to get it.
 
Five reasons why you need to think about meningitis in students – right now!
 
  1. Meningitis is one of the major health risks for young adults in their first year at university. They are the second most ‘at risk’ group for contracting this disease.
  2. Most first year students opt to live in halls. Here they will be living in very close proximity to hundreds of people who they have never encountered before, and who come from all four corners of the country (and from overseas...

Pages

Sponsored articles