Aspiring business and law undergraduate Tayyibah Naseem has become the 1,000th student to gain first hand experience of working in the business world as part of a skills training and development initiative.
18-year-old Tayyibah, who is studying sociology, psychology and law at Sutton Coldfield College, was given an insight into the running of an online directory for businesses when she spent one week learning from experts at FastFinders.co.uk, at their offices on Bell Street, Kitts Green, Birmingham.
Tayyibah learnt about the business under the watchful eye of Paul Evans, Managing Director of FastFinders.co.uk, through the ‘Creating Opportunities for 16 to 19-year-olds’ project sponsored by regional development agency Advantage West Midlands.
The three-year project was launched to encourage young people to choose a career in the Business and Professional Service Sector – one of the fastest growing in Birmingham and Solihull – by The Centre of Business Excellence in Birmingham (CBEB).
CBEB is a partnership of three leading Birmingham colleges, Sutton Coldfield College, Matthew Boulton College and Bournville College, which works closely with the Learning and Skills Council. The aim of this initiative is to give young people a work experience that is far more challenging than just making the tea – ensuring that they have opportunities to really understand what it would be like to have a career in the business and professional sector.
Claire Holden, Business Development Manager for the Business and Professional Services Cluster at Advantage West Midlands, said: “The scheme has achieved great results and given 1,000 students the chance to work for a professional organisation, lending them a competitive edge and that all important head start when job seeking.”
Lara Foster, Business Development Manager at CBEB, said: “Throughout the scheme, emphasis has been put on encouraging students from minority ethnic backgrounds to go on the placements but they were open to anyone aged 16 to 19 in full-time education. We have worked with about 150 companies in the sector, mostly SMEs, but also some large firms, to achieve the 1,000th student’s placement. 50 students gained jobs as a result.”
Beverley McGillycuddy, Skills Development Manager at the Learning and Skills Council in Birmingham, said: “It is important to encourage young people, especially from minority ethnic backgrounds, to aspire to a career within the Business and Professional Service sector. The beauty of this kind of scheme is that it gives a real insight into what a particular career would entail.”
Paul Evans said: “It was a delight to have Tayyibah working with us. She was enthusiastic, bright, well organised and motivated. We need talented people like Tayyibah and the CBEB initiative has helped to get the message across to teenage school-leavers that there are many rewarding career prospects if you choose not to go to university.”