Academic Studies at Millfield
Departments
Old Millfieldian Careers Convention
The first Old Millfieldian Careers Convention was held in June 2008. Although there have only been three of these events so far, this has already become a highlight of the school calendar and is an invaluable help for those Lower Sixth Form pupils thinking about life after Millfield.
The 4th annual OM Careers Convention, held on 18 June 2011 was attended by thirty Old Millfieldians who generously gave up their weekend and returned to the School to give presentations on a whole range of careers.
The pupils were able to choose from such diverse areas as Architecture, Engineering, the Foreign Office, City Trading, IT and Psychiatry. The OMs were able to impart some of their valuable experience as the reality of their professions were brought home to pupils in a variety of ways: the lawyer using Jaffa cakes to explain a VAT ruling and the doctor handing students a range of tubes and inviting them to try and guess how these might be used in medical procedures.
However, the importance of hard work and self-belief was not ignored. There were also many questions on the value of a university degree and the usefulness of different subjects. Budding journalists were surprised to discover the modest salaries on offer in journalism, whilst their attempts to write copy on ‘phoning chimps' was subject to professional criticism. In one design studio a group of students tried their hand at designing bodywear, whilst the commercial uses of photography were explained in another. The former rugby international stressed the importance of an agent and a comprehensive contract, whilst the founder of an advertising and marketing consultancy offered some valuable work experience. To summarise the event, an entrepreneur strongly encouraged students to seize any opportunity they find....the Convention certainly contained these in abundance.
OM Careers Convention 2011