Making an Early Start
(Years 7 to 9)
Positive Choices
(Years 10 to 11)
A Leap into the Future
(Years 12 and 13)
Guidance for Parents and Carers
Each section of the toolkits contains useful tips and tools, resources, contacts and
information to help raise educational and career aspirations.
For further information about this toolkit or to ask about other support opportunities
please contact info@positivefuturesgroup.org
Mentoring is a way of enabling the mentee to gain the skills, knowledge
and confidence to make informed choices through giving them access
to impartial guidance and support.
Before we start, please look at Appendix 1 . This will help you to understand the different entry
requirements.
Appendix 2 also provides further information about the new GCSE grading system.
And you can find out about UCAS’s tariff points to see how many points your child may need in in
order to enter the University of their choice.
UCAS has its own calculator here – you can also ask your child to use the drop-down boxes to
input their qualifications and grades, and the total will automatically be calculated. There is also a
full, in-depth guide to different qualifications here , and from Btecs to the International
Baccalaureate.
However, UCAS also advises that not all qualifications attain points, so you shouldn’t worry if
yours doesn’t feature in that guide – very few international qualifications are included, for
example.
The following are key sections to include in your CV. Make sure you build relevant
content under each section.
Personal details/header: These are standard and required by all employers, but note
that you should not include your date of birth, marital status or gender. The essentials
to include are your name, address, email address and contact number
Personal profile: This is an optional section of a graduate CV template which can be
used to show the employer you are focused and determined to pursue a career in their
field. It should appear at the beginning of your CV, be no longer than 2-4 sentences
and give an overview of your current situation e.g. “I am looking for work experience in
…”
Your education: Write in reverse chronological order, so start with your university
degree. This should be a snapshot of you as an academic e.g. your qualifications
Work experience: Include voluntary work and summer placements, extra-curricular
activities…
Interests and activities: Write about you as a person, outside of work, hobbies, sports
teams, societies/clubs, travel interests
References: Two references usually one academic and the other you’re your school,
work experience or priest…
https://www.myworldofwork.co.uk/my-career-options/choosing-my-subjects
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zmskpg8
https://www.ucas.com/careers/buzz-quiz
Subject Choices tool | My World of Work
https://targetcareers.co.uk/career-sectors
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/
https://www.truity.com/test/type-finder-careers
Quizlet: (https://quizlet.com/en-gb)-
Seneca Learning: https://senecalearning.com/en-GB/)-
Freesciencelessons on Youtube: (https://youtube.com/c/Freesciencelessons
Physics and Maths Tutor: (https://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/)
Sparknotes: (https://www.sparknotes.com/)
Tutor2u: (https://www.tutor2u.net/
Fast Tomato: (https://www.fasttomato.com/)
Mr Swift History on Youtube: (https://youtube.com/user/TheJonas1917
UCAS Tariff: https://www.ucas.com/ucas/tariff-calculator
Pearson career choices: https://www.pearson.com/uk/learners/secondary-students-and-parents/career-choices.html
MI5 career: https://www.mi5.gov.uk/careers/ssq
Construction careers: https://www.goconstruct.org/learn-about-construction/find-the-role-for-you/ultimate-quiz/
Psychology careers: https://careers.bps.org.uk/
Skills assessment | National Careers Service
Prospects Career Planner : https://www.prospects.ac.uk/planner
SACU Career Quiz: https://sacu-student.com/?page_id=2850
CITB – Go Construct: https://www.goconstruct.org/
NHS Find your career : https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/findyourcareer
Cogent Career Choices: https://www.cogentskills.com/careers/
WISE Campaign (Women into Science & Engineering) –My skills my life, try out the quizz:
https://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/how-to-get-involved/my-skills-my-life/
You can also visit for more information: https://careerpilot.org.uk/qualifications
GCSEs, NVQs/VQs, awards/certificates/diplomas. Vocational and work-related qualifications may be studied full or part-time inschools and colleges from the age of 14. They are offered at levels 1 to 4 and are usually ‘BTECs’, ‘Cambridge Technical’ or ‘City and Guilds’qualifications. Broad range of subjects on offer eg engineering, artand design,construction, health and social care, business, IT and
leisure. Often course work based however changes mean that somecourses now include exams or practical assessments.
A levels, T levels, NVQs/VQs, awards/certificates/diplomas
and other qualifications
The numerical grading was phased over four years, starting with the core
compulsory subjects – maths and Englis`h GCSEs – in 2017. Most of the
main subjects switched over in 2018, including the humanities, sciences
and most modern languages.
All remaining subjects such as Biblical Hebrew, Persian, Portuguese and
Turkish switched to the new grading system in 2020.
Explaining the new grades
The 9-1 grading scheme was brought in alongside a new GCSE curriculum
in England.
The highest grade is 9, while 1 is the lowest, not including a U (ungraded).
Three number grades – 9, 8 and 7 – correspond to the old-style top grades
of A* and A – this is designed to give more differentiation at the top end