STUDENT RESOURCE
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VIRTUAL WORK EXPERIENCE
5 WAYS BP IS SUPPORTING YOUNG PEOPLE ’ S CAREERS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Despite COVID , bp is continuing to enhance young people ’ s employability and interest in STEM , reaching more students than ever before , writes UK schools education manager Jill Anderson .
When it became clear that plans for face-to-face work experience , mentoring and careers volunteering in schools could not take place because of COVID-19 , bp quickly explored how to support young people remotely .
We are providing ongoing support in five key ways :
1
VIRTUAL WORK EXPERIENCE
One priority has been finding innovative ways to provide work experience for young people during COVID restrictions , with the aid of technology and support from staff . For example , over the summer , around 300 students who were due to be placed in bp offices , instead took part in four-day virtual insight placements .
Through live , interactive sessions on Google Classroom , in collaboration with Speakers for Schools , bp volunteers from across the company shared their knowledge of geoscience , engineering , low carbon , agility , ethics and compliance , digital careers , communication , the circular economy and procurement . ( See student case study , below .)
The 15- to 18-year-olds also took part in speed networking with bp graduate employees — known as challengers — attended sessions on interview and CV skills , and joined teamworking exercises and quizzes .
Going forward , we ’ re keen to continue offering virtual options as it helps us to reach young people all over the UK , in social mobility cold spots . We plan to advertise virtual work experience opportunities on the Speakers for Schools site and expect to recruit students through there and our other charity partners , Social Mobility Foundation and Career Ready .
2
VIRTUAL TALKS
Working with Speakers for Schools , we also enabled around 4,000 students to join virtual talks with bp speakers and senior leaders from other organisations , sharing their career stories via Teams Live . Many of these remain
available for students to watch in their own time , or during careers lessons .
For example , environmental engineer
Alejandra Castaño talked about the kind of work she ’ s involved in with bp ’ s carbon ambitions , while
Charlotte Stacey , who headed our UK Apprenticeships Programme at the time , discussed the practicalities of apprenticeships , how they ’ re structured , the benefits of completing an apprenticeship and the opportunities that exist at bp .
Since August , we have expanded our virtual programme , creating a new ‘
bp inspire me ’ series , working with Speakers for Schools ; during these , conducted over Teams Live , different bp employees bring to life how they overcame challenges and used or developed a skill through professional or personal experience .
Using bp partner
Skills Builder ’ s universal framework , which shows how to build essential skills at every stage of life , the ‘ bp inspire me ’ talks aim to help students understand the importance of these skills — which are now more crucial than ever — and relate key skills to inspirational role models .
For information about future virtual talks , we would advise careers leaders and students to follow bp on our social media channels , such as
Facebook and
Twitter (@ bp _ plc / @ bp _ UK / @ bp _ Careers ).
3
SKILLS AND MENTORING
In August , 60 students joined sessions from bp during Career Ready ’ s virtual skills festival — the charity ’ s first ever series of virtual events . This connected young people with a range of employers and volunteers so they could keep on developing their workplace skills and knowledge during COVID-19 .
In addition , through the Social Mobility Foundation , students participated in a virtual mentoring journey with bp volunteers from engineering and business roles to gain an increased understanding of their desired career and professional life , support with university applications and skills development .
Around 40 bp employees also volunteered to answer students ’ questions about coding , science and engineering careers in live , focused online chats . Students voted Meera Sewraz and Andy L Smith from bp ’ s IT & S architecture team their favourite professionals in the ‘
I ’ m a Scientist ’ initiative , an online , studentled science engagement activity where school students connect with working scientists in order to build their science capital .
4
SUPPORT WITH HOME LEARNING
In addition to virtual offers , the bp education team has been busy creating new
home-learning materials to support students , teachers and parents through these unprecedented times . This year , a record 107,000 resources have so far been downloaded — more than double the figure for the same period last year — receiving very positive feedback .
More than 3,000 parents have registered on the
bp educational service site since March ( compared with an average of 60 per month ). Secondary resources , for students aged 11-19 , include a collection of fun and creative
independent science experiments using simple items from home .
5
LESSON PLANS AND RESOURCES FOR CLASSROOMS
Now that schools have reopened , careers leaders and subject teachers can also use our lesson plans , teachers ’ notes , activity sheets and other resources ( themed around science , geography and business ) in their physical classrooms .
We are confident that our work with young people is making a difference .
Research from the Education and Employers Taskforce shows that a young person who has four or more meaningful encounters with an employer is 25 % less likely to be unemployed or not in education or training and can earn more during their career . The
ongoing Aspires research project found that students with low social capital stand to benefit most from improved careers education and links between education and employers .
Try out some of bp ’ s interactive resources
An interactive activity on the topic of carbon footprints , and how energy use and climate change are connected , including a calculator to find out your school ’ s carbon footprint .
A fun an engaging game to teach students about the periodic table , and elements and their properties .
An interactive activity which challenges students to use teamwork , maths and business skills to turn a profit in an exciting simulation .
STUDENT CASE STUDY
Paul Ofordu : gaining insights into engineering
This summer , 16-year-old Paul Ofordu , a year-12 student at Queen Elizabeth ’ s School in Barnet , north London , took part in bp ’ s virtual insight days to find out more about opportunities in engineering .
Why did you want to do work experience with bp ?
I wasn ’ t lined up to do work experience with bp , but as virtual programmes began , I started to take more interest in a wider range of engineering opportunities .
bp is part of a movement that is incredibly important to the whole world :
getting to ‘ net-zero by 2050 ’. I was immensely interested in how they would do this , so I dived right into the work experience , hoping to learn about the different parts of bp , what they do , how they can impact the future , and how they are going to achieve the emissions target .
What was your initial reaction to the idea of virtual work experience ?
At first , I didn ’ t think it could be as informative , intriguing or fun as having a day in bp ’ s actual facilities . However , after listening to the different speakers and to the other students doing the virtual work experience , I was pleasantly surprised by how much I was learning . The experience definitely changed my mind .
Could you tell us a bit about what the four-day placement entailed ?
Over the four insight days , we listened and spoke to members of bp teams from different sectors . We learned about different types of engineering , finance and other areas of bp . We also did activities based on some of those sectors . For example , on the final day , we took part in an environmental debate from the viewpoints of different groups , including activists and energy companies .
On the final day , we took part in an environmental debate from the viewpoints of different groups , including activists and energy companies
What knowledge and skills did you get out of it ?
I was able to improve my public speaking , as we talked together in small teams , communicating our own points and personal views . In terms of knowledge , I learned much more about how much money , time and energy goes into obtaining oil for fuel and other uses , such as polymers . I also learned about the opportunities open at bp and the paths I could take from here .
What was the highlight for you ?
I loved learning about the mechanical engineering side of bp , and what they are doing to improve efficiency , sustainability and lower carbon .
What did the speed networking involve ?
We introduced ourselves briefly at the start of the programme , and by the end of the four days , we were able to share our social media and LinkedIn profiles , so that we could stay in contact and potentially be important connections for each other in the future .
What would you say to others considering taking part in similar virtual opportunities ?
It would be a waste not to do it . The amount of knowledge you can gain from these virtual opportunities is immense and they ’ re fun at the same time . If you ’ re considering doing a VWEX with bp , you definitely should !
For more resources , click
here
ABOUT BP
Operating in 78 countries , bp delivers heat , light and mobility products and services to people around the world in ways that help to drive the transition to a lower-carbon future . bp . com / careers