Today marks the start of a new series on this blog. We will be going to individual students who are currently undertaking Foundation Apprenticeships to get a sense of their experiences and opinions of their course. Today we will be focusing on Jodie, a Foundation Apprentice in the Social Services Children and Young People framework. She is just beginning her second and final year of the programme. Jodie is a fantastic example of an Apprentice; not only has she expressed an interest in working with individuals with Additional Support Needs (ASN), but she also volunteers her free time to work at ‘The Hub’, East Lothian Council’s centre for support for primary children with severe and complex needs. I sat down with Jodie to ask her a couple of questions:
Why did you decide to do a Foundation Apprenticeship?
At my course choice meeting, my guidance teacher said it would be good for my CV and getting into the career that I want to get into. He said it would open a lot more options for me compared to if I didn’t have this Foundation Apprenticeship.
Why did you choose the Social Services Children and Young People framework?
It was the Foundation Apprenticeship that linked into what I want to do. I would like to end up working at The Hub, but if I don’t end up working here then I would like to work somewhere like ‘Enable’. I enjoy working with both adults and young people. I would also quite like to be a social worker if I can.
What has been your favourite part of the Foundation Apprenticeship?
My placement at The Hub. At the start my placement was in a nursery, but it wasn’t for me. I knew I wanted to work with young people with ASN, so I was placed here instead.
What has been the most difficult part about doing a Foundation Apprenticeship?
The workload at the start was quite overwhelming.
Would you recommend a Foundation Apprenticeship to other students?
Yes. It’s good for your CV and gives you an advantage over other people.
Do you know what you want to do when you leave school?
I would like to do anything that involves working with people with disabilities, whether that’s adults or children.
How does doing a Foundation Apprenticeship help you reach those goals?
For university, this counts as two Highers, so that will help me in achieving my goals.
I’d like to extend a huge thank you to Jodie for meeting with me during her summer holiday – it’s really appreciated. If you’d like to find out more about Foundation Apprenticeships, have a read of our blog post here.
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