EY Foundation: Smart Futures
Congratulations to four of our sixth form students; Imran Farrah, Fatema Dhanji, Hamza Qureshi, and Maiya Chandler who have all successfully gained a place on the EY Foundation's Smart Futures paid experience of work programme. This summer, these students will start a ten month programme that includes paid work experience, a business mentor for help with career advice and applications, and an opportunity to gain a Level 2 Chartered Management Institution qualification in Team Leading. Here's a short interview with Maiya Chandler (who once played football with Ashley Young) about the application process, what she's excited about and how it may help her in the future.
What are your career aspirations?
I'm not 100% sure what I want to do after sixth form. I see myself working in London, definitely in something to do with business and I'm currently thinking about an apprenticeship in Business Management or Project Management. My A-level Business classes are my favourite and I feel more motivated in that subject because I enjoy it.
Who are EY?
Ernst & Young (EY) are one of the biggest professional services companies in the whole world. Professional services companies help businesses work better and be more efficient with their resources. I know that EY help businesses in four areas; assurance (accountancy), tax, consultancy (efficiency) and transactions (buying and selling). They are also often named in FORTUNE's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list and are number 29 in the world in 2017. I'm really excited about working in this kind of environment during the summer.
Why did you apply for the EY Foundation's Smart Futures programme?
Well, apart from the facts I've just given you... it's an opportunity for me to learn skills that we don't learn in the classroom and gain some workplace knowledge. It's a chance to apply my business knowledge, acquired through studying, in the real world. I went to the presentation in school and discovered more; I'll be able to network with business professionals who can help me in the future with apprenticeship, university and job applications, it's three weeks of paid work experience and I related to the presenters. They had recently been through the same process as me, were unsure about going to university, and I realised that I don't have to make a decision right now, I can do this work experience placement and it'll help me decide.
What was the application process like, what were the entry requirements?
Firstly, I read somewhere that they look for Top People, not top grades. I think the entry requirements focus more on ambition, willingness to learn and motivation. There was a written application where I had to talk about times I had proved myself and how quickly I can learn new skills. Then there was a phone interview which I must have done well in even though I was just about to tuck into a Meal Deal...
Is there anyone in the business world that you look up to? Do you have a business idol?
I don't want to be like anyone else, you have to be yourself. In my Business A-level class, we learnt about Richard Reed (Innocent) and Michelle Mone (Ultimo), they both have completely different styles of management but both were really successful. Richard Reed's offices have swinging chairs and his employees can wear jeans to work whereas Michelle Mone has more of a conventional business take, seems to like rules and is super organised. I admire them both but if I were to run a business, neither way would work for me, I'd have to find somewhere in the middle. That's what I mean by not being like anyone else; you have to do what works for you and your business.
If you need help applying for work experience or internships, advice on how to become the perfect candidate or have any questions about the EY Foundation then speak to Miss Mattison or go to http://www.ey.com/uk/en/about-us/corporate-responsibility/ey-foundation-young-people to find out more.
