First session at RAF Valley for Blue Skies Level 3 students

Our Year 10 Blue Skies students from Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi had their first Level 3 session at RAF Valley on Wednesday 22^nd June. It was a CV Writing and Interview Skills session delivered by Human Resources personnel from Ascent. The students arrived on IV Squadron to be welcomed with the exciting news that they were first going to fly a Hawk aeroplane using the simulator. Some of the students were a little nervous when entering the dome, but the simulator instructors put them at ease and talked them through the aircraft controls. The students successfully took off and enjoyed a flight over many local, well-known landmarks, including flying low-level through Snowdonia. There were even a few loop-the-loops! The students had to listen carefully to the instructions about how to fly the Hawk using the control stick, gear stick and the foot pedals, as well as navigate. All the students had an amazing time and hugely appreciated the session. Thank you to Ascent and BAE Systems for giving our students a once in a lifetime experience!

Following on from flying in the simulators, the Human Resources team from Ascent delivered an informative session about how to write a CV. At first, the students were reticent about saying what they were good at and what their interests were, but with guidance from Claire, Gemma and Lara, they came up with a long list of skills and interests. The students also realised that their experiences on the Blue Skies programme are particularly helpful in writing a list of skills they are competent in, such as teamwork, leadership, confidence and being a supportive friend.

After a well-earned lunch break, the students returned to a fun session about interviewing. The session began by brainstorming ideas in groups based on these questions: what is an interview and what is the point of an interview? What should you wear to an interview? What type of questions will you be asked? These questions generated lots of thought-provoking discussion. The groups came back together to share their discussion points. To conclude the session, the students were split into two teams and had to watch an interview scenario role-played by Gemma and Lara. Every time they noticed a bad interview skill they had to shout out ‘Hawk’ or ‘Grob’. The team with the most shout outs won. The role-play was very funny but clearly demonstrated how not to act in an interview.

These sessions are pertinent to the students as they are about to embark on their final GCSE year, where they are expected to write CVs for their Welsh Baccalaureate and will be interviewed for college places. JET would like to say a big thank you to Ascent’s Human Resources team for their time and for sharing their wealth of experience and knowledge to the students. It was a fantastic day.