CAREERS NEWSLETTER
2018-‐19
ISSUE 2 – Friday 28 September 2018
ITV’S ‘THE ISLAND STRAIT’ FEATURES BABLAKE BUSINESSWOMAN
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The search for Lord Sugar’s next apprentice – his 14 – returns to BBC 1 in October. While the team tasks featured have useful lessons on how to lead, inspire, innovate, manage and fulfil a brief, we would remind students this show is primarily entertainment, so the boardroom ‘banter’, film editing and candidates’ bravado do not necessarily reflect the real business world. We secured the following interview however, with former pupil Frankie Hobro, owner of Anglesey Sea Zoo, who features on ITV’s ‘The Island Strait’:
When did you leave Bablake? I left in 1991, after completing my A levels, having started in Shell L in 1984. What did you study for A level? Biology, Chemistry and English Literature, as well as General Studies, which everyone took. I was a bit of an anomaly, as there seemed a preference for students to study either the arts or sciences; m y teachers were very sceptical about m e mixing my subjects. I think ideas have changed a lot since then though!
CIVIL SERVICE LAUNCHES DEGREE APPRENTICESHIP IN ECONOMICS The UK Civil Service has just launched the UK’s first degree-‐level apprenticeship in economics – creating new routes to careers in the Civil Service for young people who would prefer to study for a degree whilst working at the heart of government. A range of central government departments and agencies including HM Treasury, Department for Work & Pensions (DWP), Department for Business, Energy, Innovation and Science (BEIS), Department for Education (DfE) and Department for Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) will provide apprenticeship placements through the new programme – which will offer students a starting salary of about £22k in London and in excess of £20k nationally.
(Interview continues on page 2…)
For further information about the Government Economics Service Degree Apprenticeship Programme, please email economic.apprenticeship@hmtreasury.gov.u k or see: www.gov.uk/government/publications/gove rnment-‐economics-‐service-‐degree-‐ apprenticeship-‐programme.
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#BABLAKEPUPILSEVERYWHERE – FRANKIE HOBRO
(…from page 1)
I also knew I wanted a year out – long before the term 'gap year' had been so widely encouraged – so I was the anomaly again there. I left to travel the world for a year, after working locally to earn some m oney. Several teachers said they were concerned I would never come home to do my degree, but I did return, as I had already secured and deferred my place at the University of Lancaster before I began travelling. When I came back, I was far more than just a year older, I was ready for university and had a much better idea of what I did and did not want to do! Which degree did you study? My degree was Combined Science. My subjects were Biology, Ecology and Psychology; I continued with all of these throughout the three-‐year course, despite the high workload and heavy timetable. In m y final year though, m y thesis was based on combined Biology and Ecology Conservation, which meant my weighting was more on those two subjects. What else did you do at university? I took up a lot of extra-‐ curricular activities especially sports – a surprise perhaps for my PE teachers, as I never excelled at sports at school. Maybe I just wasn't 'discovered', as I ended up being a very active member of the university’s hockey and rowing clubs, as well as taking up Tae Kwon Do, in which I am now training towards my back belt.
I took on the job of Inter-‐College Chair which meant chairing meetings and organising all the inter college sports -‐ a voluntary job which nobody wanted as it m eant getting up early every Sunday morning, sorting teams from the colleges for different sports events and running the leagues and tournaments. As a result, I got to play in loads of weird and wonderful sports teams, as well as all the usual ones, and had a very active role in the clubs and societies in the Student Union. After a year or two, I was a well-‐known face around campus and throughout the university. I stood for election at the end of my final year and was chuffed to bits when I was elected as Athletics Union President -‐ a landslide victory over a male rugby player and a m ale football player, which made m e the first ever female AU president in over 30 years at the university! And best of all, I achieved a good degree result too, a high 2:1. So I had a 4th year where I was paid to stay at the university and work as AU president, managing budgets, organising events, seeking sponsorship and press coverage, chairing meetings, and much m ore. This was all very good experience and I was earning a wage too. I was also Assistant Dean of the College that year, which meant I helped with the welfare and disciplinary aspect of college life for younger students. What did you do after your degree? I secured a place as a field team volunteer with the Gerald Durrell Wildlife Trust (based at Jersey Zoo), working abroad on real conservation projects. They took people on with no experience and trained them up in the very specific skills needed for each project; of course the interview stage was to enable them to choose the right individuals for the work and the conditions. My first placement was Mauritius – again I was so pleased with myself as they had around 300-‐ 400 applicants a year but only took on four or five, and I was one of them. I deferred that for a year and bought a round-‐the-‐world ticket to do some adventuring and gain some extra voluntary conservation experience. I bought a Land Rover and drove it across Africa for 6 months before selling it again and moving on... a whole story in itself! I ended up working for 4 years in Mauritius (in two stints) and lots of other amazing places as well, being referred to different projects for placements and picking up more and more hands-‐on skills and knowledge as I went. I specialised in critically endangered species, island conservation and habitat management; this means I have worked with m any of the rarest species in the world and in some of the remotest locations. It was an amazing lifestyle but, despite sounding very glamorous, really hard work. I completed my PADI Divemaster course along the way as I was doing a lot of reef monitoring and m arine conservation
#MARINEBIOLOGY #MUMPRENEUR #CONSERVATION
As featured on ITV’s ‘Strait Island’ …ANGLESEY SEA ZOO
work around the islands and then had an offer from Bangor University School of Ocean Sciences of a fully funded 18 m onth MSc, including half a year in Mexico and Southern California doing my thesis field work on manta rays. I got married and then worked in the Maldives and Seychelles on various projects for around three years. What made you move to Anglesey and how did the Sea Zoo come about? I knew the Sea Zoo from my childhood holidays in the area and my MSc at Bangor, and we heard it was up for sale. It was a one-‐off mad chance to take, but seemed like a good opportunity to return to North Wales and do something I was passionate about. The business was old and tired having had the same owners for almost 30 years, who had no science background and were ready to move on and invest elsewhere, struggling with the competition of bigger and better 'Sea Life' centres or similar tropical attractions which were popping up elsewhere in the UK. I saw it as a chance to turn the business around to what it is today, so we wrote a business plan to buy the Sea Zoo and presented it to four banks -‐ three of them went for it! And that was it really -‐ negotiating with a bank, taking on a huge loan and moving back to Anglesey, an island by the sea, just like all the other places I had lived in for years and years, although with the whole business and staffing side to manage as well as the conservation. Anglesey is such a lovely place to live and have a family. I love being able to climb and dive, not that I have as much time as I would like to do these. I put my passions into the business. Sustainability and conservation are key and we have the unique selling point of being the only all British aquarium -‐ anywhere -‐ with natural water from the Strait and breeding programmes for endangered native species. We educate everyone about the marine life that m ost people don’t know exists on their own doorstep. I love it! It will be 12 years in March 2019 since buying the business; I am still working to promote what makes it special and the whole sustainability, but I am gradually getting there. I love the education and community work we do, as well as the hands on conservation. Sadly my husband and I divorced over 5 years ago, which admittedly was a huge stress initially as the costs of buying him out put a huge financial strain on everything. However, everything is thriving now. I live on site with m y two young children, making more and m ore progress promoting what makes the Sea Zoo and whole area special, and enthusing to people about British marine life and the importance of protecting it. What has the reaction to ITV's The Island Strait been like? Wonderful! I’ve had lots of supportive, enthusiastic comments, especially from locals who are delighted the beauty of this area is being so well publicised. Many people from further afield, who had not realised what life was like here or how beautiful it was, now want to visit. The original series ‘The Strait’ went out on ITV Wales at the start of this year and I had a lot of positive reactions from that! Strangers stop me in the street saying they have seen me on the TV and asking about the Sea Zoo. My kids are funny as they reckon it is ‘just because you're famous now!’ What plans do you have for the future? I have big plans for expansion here, to make a lot more indoor space and allow the business to be open all year round with an even better USP and more facilities -‐ watch this space! I am creating a social enterprise aspect of the business to cover all the not-‐for-‐profit voluntary and community work we do, which will run alongside the on-‐going business, and I have been approached about doing some m ore TV work as well, particularly regarding the conservation work. What was the best piece of advice you ever received at Bablake? Don't be afraid to ask for help. Nobody is great at everything, so it is not a sign of weakness. It shows strength and open-‐mindedness for learning and progress. Finally, what would you tell your 16 year old self? Don't try to fit in a box, dare to be different and take any opportunity that comes along, be confident about being unique, be determined and it will all pay off! From experience, always give 100% to everything you do. Nobody is good at everything and you won't always succeed, but then at least if you fail or don't do as well as you'd hoped, you will know in your heart you did the best you could possibly do, instead of wondering with hindsight, if things could have worked out differently. If you fail at something, try tackling it again from a different angle, and, if you do that often enough, eventually you will find the right angle and succeed. Progress starts outside your comfort zone, so take any opportunities that come your way. Go for it! The worst thing that can happen is that something may not work out, but at least you will have learnt what does not work, which is still progress! For more information on Anglesey Sea Zoo, see www.angleseyseazoo.co.uk. We thank Frankie for the excellent interview and look forward to hearing further updates on the success of h er business.
#DISCOVERYOURPOTENTIAL
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IN THE POST/ NEWS UPDATE
University Related • Booklets/ Magazines Coventry – ‘Innovate’, highlighting the university’s research and enterprise activity. Lancaster Medical School – Advance notice of 60 extra medicine places for 2019. Loughborough – Mini Guide. Study in Australia and New Zealand – ‘The Guide 2019: Everything you need to know about applying to university in Australia and New Zealand’.
• Open Day Information Falmouth – www.falmouth.ac.uk/open-‐days. LIPA (Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts) – via www.lipa.ac.uk. Liverpool -‐ www.liverpool.ac.uk/openday.
Bablake Events • Careers Fora (2) & (3) – we have arranged a Languages double bill on Thursday 11 and Friday 12 October (1pm in the Careers Centre). Former pupils Emily Robinson and Rachel Taylor will offer advice on how to use languages in business abroad as well as offering their views on the importance of studying languages. (More info to follow on the format.) • Upper Sixth Mock Interview Morning – we will report fully on our Upper Sixth Mock Interview Morning in Issue 3, offering advice and praise from the interviewers and reflections on the overall performance of the year group. th • Degree or Not To (Do A) Degree – we are planning an evening forum with CapGemini on Tuesday November 27 for mainly 4ths and above regarding the rise of degree apprenticeship opportunities. More details will follow! Courses/ Events Please note we a lways try not to a dvertise opportunities that cost more than a reasonable a mount to cover necessary admin/ refreshments/ materials costs, unless students or staff report favourably on a particular course (e.g. Headstart, Inspire or Smallpeice Trust.)
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National Apprenticeship Show – 3, 4 October (Cheltenham Racecourse). See www.nationalapprenticeshipshow.org/west/ for more information on exhibitors. [What Career/ University Live? 12, 13 October (Olympia) may have a wider range.] ‘So You Want To Be A Doctor’ – 17, 18 December (Liverpool Medical Institution) (£185). NB Liverpool usually runs a cheaper taster day option later in the academic year; Medlink (medlink-‐uk.net/medlink-‐free/) has a free day conference – Dec 1 7 in Nottingham -‐ and Coventry’s University Hospital runs a 3 day course in February for c£50. WorldSkills UK Live -‐ 15, 16, 17 November (The NEC, Birmingham). Free via www.worldskillsuk.org -‐ the UK’s largest skills, apprenticeships and careers event
Work Experience • Jaguar Land Rover Careers Re applications for their work experience programme: Winter Programme applications open on Mon 8 Oct (until Mon 5 Nov or before); Summer Programme applications open on Mon 7 Jan (until Mon 4 Feb or before, if oversubscribed).
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FEATURED MOOC (2) ‘THE SECRET POWER OF BRANDS’
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#MOOCs #DiscoverYourPotential #18Before18 #IntellectualCuriosity
See Miss Blackie for more information