Careers Convention

“Exceptional” and “informative” – just a couple of the adjectives used to describe our amazingly successful Careers Convention. With over 75 delegates – 12 of whom were alumna! – and over 180 Croydon High pupils, parents, friends, and pupils from local schools, it was one of our most successful Careers Conventions yet.

The selection of areas covered by the delegates was wide-ranging, almost an A-Z of careers from Accountancy to Veterinary Science. Prestigious companies such as Deloitte, G&T, Heart, HMRC, L’Oréal, Mott Macdonald, and Sainsbury’s were out in force, bringing their expertise, information, and freebies! Career areas included Engineering, Healthcare and Science, Law, and Retail, to name just a few. High profile universities such as Imperial College London, University of Birmingham, and University of Nottingham, as well as Gap Year providers, offered a colourful display in the hall.

All of our delegates were enthusiastic ambassadors for their companies and vocations. Many came with gifts – all with up-to-date information, leaflets, and advice, invaluable to any pupil keen to position themselves for a lifetime of success in the world of work. In addition, Alex Webb passed on her wise advice about what to do if you don’t know what to do! The commitment and enthusiasm of all the delegates was overwhelmingly obvious. Some had inexhaustible queues of prospective employees throughout the evening and some were still imparting their advice well after the event had ended.

Our pupils turned out in huge numbers, arriving early, eager to sample as many careers as they could. They planned their evening carefully, armed with their programmes and career workbooks, which provided sample questions, helped them record their research, and note down their new contacts. Many were offered invaluable work experience placements. I was very proud, but not surprised to hear that the delegates were glowing in their praise of the students commenting on how eloquent our pupils were during their conversations. They are most certainly equipped with the skills, talents, and qualities to ensure that they will be highly successful professional adults.

I would like to express my deep gratitude to all those who volunteered their time, expertise, and resources to make this such a successful event. Huge thanks also goes out to my Career Prefect, Esther, and all the Senior Prefect Team, who were amazing at keeping me calm.  I have already started collecting ideas for the next Careers Convention in 2022 and hope that all those who attended this year will revisit us at a future careers event.

It is always useful to hear any constructive feedback on our events. I hope those of you who attended the event can help me plan even more successful careers events by answering .

Mrs Susan Gower

Director of Sixth Form Experience, Welfare, and Careers