When I talk to learners about their potential careers, I always say that – there’s where you start, the decisions that you have to make along the way that influence your journey, and then there are things that change and evolve along the way. I mean, I did my degree in American Studies and Media & Communications – I learned from it and had great life experiences, but that has absolutely nothing to do with what I'm doing now!
Embracing the travel bug
When I left school in 1986 I just wanted to travel, but I decided to go to college and study for some A-levels first. After that, I still had the travel bug, so I took a gap year before going to Uni and went backpacking around Europe and America.
Feeling much more cultured and experienced, I then went to Uni in Wolverhampton and America and studied for my degree. As part of that I did ‘Camp America’ in New England, USA for four years! I didn’t do any teaching there, but I had an absolute ball and did lots of travelling.
After Uni I wanted to make a difference, so in 1994 I spent time in Romania working in an orphanage teaching English. This was my first foray into teaching, and set the scene for what was to come – but I still had more travelling to get out of my system first…
Starting a career
Once back in the UK, I got my first job in 1994 at Sight & Sound College in Manchester as a Training Consultant, where I worked for a couple of years, and then the travel bug kicked in again and I went backpacking around the world, but fortunately I came back into the job 12 months later.
Soon after, in 1994 I moved to Corporate Services Group Plc. as an NVQ Assessor & Training Advisor, and then I moved to North Area College where I worked from 1998 for the next four years as an Internal Verifier & Assessor – responsible for the delivery, assessment and verification of modern apprentices. I always came back and found roles related to education, other than travelling that’s what I enjoy doing. In January 2001 I started at Skills Solutions, before we were known as GC – and started my 23-and-a-half-year career with the organisation.
Starting my journey with GC
I started as a Business Skills Assessor, and then moved into training, delivering D32 and D33 Assessor Qualifications. I then assessed management qualifications for around four years, and in 2005 I became Lead IQA, Tutor Assessor for the management team, responsible for end-to-end delivery, including all sales and marketing, teaching and quality assurance – which I did for just over 10 years.
The difference I see in GC now compared to back then is massive. When I first started, it was all face-to- face and we were in the office all the time, with no remote working or training. But things change and I do love the flexibility in my job nowadays - I've got a really nice balance that’s half remote and in-person, which suits me fine.
Support and direction when you need it
When I was the Lead IQA, the team was impacted by redundancies, and I thought it might be my time to leave GC, because all my team had left. A member of the team, Rose, took the time to encourage me to stay and consider a career move. I took on an opportunity in the Higher Education (HE) team as HE Tutor, and for the next six years I was responsible for delivering various qualifications, including the PGCE and Cert.Ed. qualifications.
It also gave me the opportunity attend lots of courses and I absolutely loved the change – so thanks Rose for believing in me. This experience put me in good stead for what was to come – working in the Quality Team. In 2021 I applied for and got the Teaching and Learning Manager role, which I’ve now been enjoying for the past three years.
If you’re thinking about a career change, or looking to work in different business areas, I’d say before you look elsewhere, check out the opportunities here at GC. There are so many opportunities here and GC is fantastic with looking after personal wellbeing and investing in personal development.
The quality shines through
I just love the diverse nature of my job, and I'm teaching all sorts of different subjects. No day is ever the same – I don't get bored and I'm always kept on my toes.
There's some fantastic quality here at GC – in terms of our people and what we do. Sometimes when I’ve completed an observation, I’m just taken aback – I just think it's a real privilege to watch and work with the team.
At GC we have so many different teams and different people, who are really supportive, many have been here a long time as well. Whilst you’re here, make some good friends, our people and being part of a large supportive team is one of the things that keeps me going.