Work Experience at Wadham

Artur and Zoe, both Year 10 students from Swan School in Headlington, spent time with different teams to see how everyone contributes to the running of Wadham. We enjoyed hosting them and benefitted from their fresh perspective on our ways of working.

Artur was keen to find out about how we put our sustainability strategy into practice in all of Wadham's departments. He spent time with our Estates Manager, Chris Cox, and the Works team; Head of Housekeeping, Helen Wynn, and her team; Head Chef, Neil Mahon, and the kitchens team; Sarah Rush, PA to the Finance Bursar and Fellows' Secretary; Head Gardener, David, and his team; the Communications team; and Frances Lloyd, our Director of Sustainability.

At the end of his work experience, Artur gave a presentation to to Neil, Chris, Sarah, and Frances, to share his ideas on how we could engage the College community further on sustainability. Artur told us hat he had loved his week here and that his take away is to 'be more sustainable.' His teacher, Ms Ekins, was grateful that College members had put so much time and thought into giving Artur a real learning experience in lots of different departments, at the end of which he had become 'fired up about sustainability'.

Zoe's week included time with Aga, working in our wine cellars; with members of the Academic Office, taking part in a school visit with tours of Wadham, the Biology Department, and the Botanic Gardens; and with Ikhlas and Tim, working in the library. Zoe told us she had loved her week because she enjoys working with and meeting lots of different people and 'seeing what they do behinds the scenes'.

Frances Lloyd, Director of Sustainability, said:
Alongside our extensive access and outreach work to help young people make informed choices about their futures, we are also pleased to support Year 10 work experience placements in the College to offer young people insights into a real work environment, explore potential careers they may not have considered, develop employability skills, and help build their confidence.

These one-week placements are also a great way for young people to adapt to a new environment and connect classroom learning to real-life situations, helping them to see how subjects and skills at school are used at work. There also many benefits to Wadham in offering the placements as young people bring fresh perspectives, encourage reflection on our practices and can also help staff develop mentoring skills.

We would like to thank our Year 10 work experience placement students this year for their enthusiasm, valued contributions and professional approach.  We wish them all the best in their education and future careers.