NorthGate College Career Day 2018 was held on Friday 11 May.  Career Day at NGC is an initiative designed to provide an opportunity for the Form 3 and Form 4 students to deliberately and strategically reflect on career possibilities and begin to map their way forward.  The objective is to make the interaction as practical and as meaningful as possible.

The introductory session was led by Mrs. Marsha Youssef, a parent and psychologist, who has collaborated with NorthGate College on several occasions.  Her session was very practical as she shared with the students not only her personal story, but also a road map to get from where they are at present to where they want to be by examining the options for their career path. She highlighted the reality that though necessary, academic excellence alone is not sufficient.  The students must possess passion and an awareness of their personal attributes, even as they prepare to enter the world of work.

Mrs. Youssef with an eager bunch students.

This interaction paved the way for the intimate, small group sessions to follow with professionals in a multiplicity of areas, selected based on the students’ recommendations. As they did in 2017, NorthGate College parents willingly gave of their time to partner with us for Career Day 2018.  They, along with several of our collaborative partners, came ready to share. The students were given the options to interact with any 4 out of the 14 professionals who had set up stations in the designated area.  The fields represented were: clinical psychology, nutrition, finance, ICT/animation, marketing and sales, law/judiciary, army/special forces, event management, engineering, architecture and medicine.  This interaction was REAL as the professionals gave the students practical insight into their professions and fielded their questions as the students enthusiastically moved from one professional to another.  The invited professionals left with a deep gratitude for having been able to contribute in this meaningful way to the decision-making process of the students.  It is safe to say that both benefited from the experience!

The day drew to a close with the highly anticipated, albeit short, trip just outside the school’s gates.  For the sixth consecutive year, the Ministry of Tertiary Education and Skills Training’s Jobs and Career Coach was invited to be a part of NGC’s Career Day, so the students were able to benefit from the information they shared, which complemented what they had been learning throughout the day.  An interesting bit of trivia was that one of the employees on the Career Bus (Stephan Mondol) was a past NorthGate College student. He made a special requested to be on the scheduled visit so that he could give back to his old school, TEN years after having left!

Long after the sessions ended, students were abuzz.  Many felt empowered having been equipped with knowledge of the process entailed in considering their careers.  Students were shifted from a place of anxiety and consternation to a place of calm and surety. In essence, NorthGate College Career Day 2018 was a thought-provoking experience; a process towards a process!