26% of tech firm CEOs attended a private school, compared to 7% of the population as a whole.
According to Tech Talent Charter, only 3% of people currently working in the tech sector in the UK are from Black backgrounds.
According to the ONS, women make up only 18% of those working in digital technology roles.
In 2020, girls made up only 14% of those studying computing A-level.
The UK tech sector has grown 40% over the course of two years.
There are an estimated 870,000 vacancies in digital and tech in the UK, which costs £63 billion a year.
We arrange a 3 month employer-led programme providing fortnightly mentoring sessions – all of which are led by leading digital companies including LinkedIn, Just Eat Takeaway, Vodafone, Cisco and Microsoft.
We are designed in accordance with the Gatsby Benchmarks and the Teacher Toolkit Framework.
Students will be assigned a business mentor who works in the digital sector in order to develop ambitious and realistic career goals and make steps to achieve these.
This mentoring helps students learn about career opportunities in the digital sector and make informed subject choices for their post-16 and post-18 options. The pupils will also feel more prepared when applying for their post-18 options and build their professional network.
• Opportunity to learn from top digital companies from tech start ups to global digital firms including LinkedIn, Just Eat Takeaway and Vodafone.
• 3 x Mentoring sessions per pupil led by digital experts.
• Our career programme is tailored to the Gatsby Benchmarks.
• Photos and testimonials of students and employers during the programme which can be used for marketing and enrolment purposes.
• Organise whole year group assemblies
• Manage employee training and processing employees’ DBS.
95% of the young people surveyed agreed that their experience on Career Accelerator helped them consider their future educational and career opportunities.
of the young people surveyed agreed that their experience on Career Accelerator helped them set goals for the future.
80% of young people who finished the programme were considering doing a job in the digital sector compared to 56% before the programme.
91%
1. Recruitment: We promote Career Accelerator to Year 10-13 students in assemblies and recruit 20 students per year group through an application form and interview process.
2. Kick-Off Session: The students have a kick-off session where they learn about the digital economy and how to make the most of Career Accelerator. They receive a student handbook with mentoring session ideas.
3. Fortnightly Mentoring Sessions: Students will each be assigned a mentor who works in the digital sector in order to develop ambitious and realistic career goals and make steps to achieve these.
4. Graduation workshop: Once students have had their 3 sessions they are invited to a graduation workshop to reflect on what they’ve learnt and learn how to sell this when applying for post-18 options.
“My path has been set straight thanks to my mentor and I have a clear target ahead of me.”
Gary, Year 13 student
“[My mentor] really helped me have a clearer understanding of different options after 6th form and helped me decide what is best suited to me.”
Ellie, Year 12
“As someone who knew little about the digital sector and was previously not considering any careers in it, it was interesting… to learn more about the wide variety of careers available.”
Elspeth, Year 12
“My mentor was very helpful in helping me fill out a form for my internship, which I got into”
Armela, Year 12
“The best part of the programme was having the opportunity to be able to speak with a professional in a role within a field I also plan to be a part of in the future.”
Firat, Year 12
“If it wasn’t for me speaking to [my mentor] I wouldn’t be where I am now and be this confident.”
Erin, Year 10
• Learning from career and labour market information: Career Accelerator focuses on preparing students for jobs in the modern economy. The employers who deliver the content in our programmes come from industries which are experiencing a growth in job creation and market size; these include: Cyber Security, FinTech (financial technology), HealthTech (health technology), EdTech (education technology), Tech Entrepreneurship, Social Media, Video Gaming, Artificial Intelligence, among others.
• Encounters with Employers and Employees: The workshops are designed to demystify what it’s like working in different areas of the modern economy. Career Accelerator is delivered by digital employers who have experience in their respective sectors.
• A Stable Careers Programme: Career Accelerator provides a holistic 3 month career programme providing workshops, mentoring and some work placements to ensure that students are receiving multiple methods of career support and that this is not done on an arbitrary basis.
• Addressing the needs of each pupil: Career Accelerator provides the students with personalised mentorship led by employees working in the digital sector, who they collaborate with to identify their career interests, build realistic and ambitious career goals and make steps to achieve these.
• Personal Guidance: Students will receive personal guidance to do with career planning during the mentoring sessions. The purpose of the mentoring is to help students reflect on their interests and strengths, learn about career planning and goal setting and develop realistic goals and a plan of action to achieve these.
Career Accelerator is committed to ensuring the safeguarding of the children, young people and adults at risk with whom we work.
Career Accelerator endeavours to safeguard children and adults at risk with a clear Safeguarding policy and practices. You can access our Safeguarding Policy here.
