As you head towards the end of S4, there's a big decision for you to make:

·         Will I stay on at school?

To help you make up your mind, there’s another question to answer:

·         What could I do if I don’t?

Read on for some information and advice to help you explore the options and decide what suits you best.

The four main options are:

·         Staying on at school

Leaving school and:

·         Going to college to do a further education course

·         Going into training: Skillseekers or a modern apprenticeship

·         Going straight into a job

As you go through these options and consider them one by one, remember to

·         Think about your long term career plans (if you have any yet): what’s going to help you to achieve them?

·         Work out the options that fit best with your skills and interests, and your attitude to studying.

·         Talk your ideas over with your parent or carer. Are there any money issues you need to think about?

Go to the sections below for some background on the options and some ideas and suggestions to think about:

1.   Staying on at school   

2.   Going to college to do a further education course

3.   Going into work based training

4.   Going straight into a job

5.   More information and advice

6.   School leaving dates

7.   Keeping your parents and carers informed

1.   Staying on at school

Staying on at school for a fifth and possibly sixth year is becoming a more and more popular choice: around 76% of 16 year olds stay at school beyond their official leaving date.

And the longer you stay on the better your chances are of getting into work, training or full time education:

·         In 2007 94% of Scotland’s S6 leavers got into work, training or full time education.

·         The proportion of S4 leavers who did so was 76.5%.

Some of the benefits of staying on at school are:

·         You have the chance to carry on with subjects you have developed a strong interest in (which should help you to get more qualifications).

·         You’ll have more time to think about what you want to do after school and find out about the careers and courses open to you (which should enable you to work out your choices and have a backup plan too).

However, to make the most out of staying on at school remember:

·         To get more qualifications you have to be prepared to put the work in.

·         Taking your time and exploring the options is one thing; just putting the decision off isn’t the same thing at all!

·         You still need to put the time in constructively, using the careers library, using career related computer software, visiting careers and job fairs and going to college and university open days.

·         When you’re ready to get to a decision point, talk over your plans with the careers adviser who visits your school and work out your career action plan.

Finance

Once you reach your 16^th birthday you can claim an Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) of up to £30 a week during term time if you are staying on at school and from a family with a low income.

There are conditions attached, and the amount you get depends on your parents’ or carers’ income. You can find out more by reading the information in ‘Funding for staying on at school or college’ (EMA) on PlanIT Plus, or going direct to the EMA website at www.emascotland.com.

2.   Going to college to do a further education course

By going to college full time:

·         You can learn new skills, preparing you for a job or area of work.

·         You can develop your interest or skills in a specific career area.

·         You can get the qualifications you need to take you into a more advanced course like a Higher National Diploma or a degree.

·         You can dip your toe in the water; find out if you have the potential for going further with studying the subject.

You get the chance to:

·         Be independent

·         Meet new and different people

·         Expand your social life

You’ll have to get used to new ways of learning and thinking. You will have to make adjustments too.  Study and assessment methods are likely to be different, often less exam focused, more practical or ‘hands on’.

Independence means taking responsibility:

·         Managing your own time - organising your work schedule, organising your free time, and handing work in on time.

·         Managing your ‘work life balance’- making the most of being a student, enjoying the freedom that comes with it, but putting the work in because that’s how you get results.

If you go to college straight from S4 to do a full time non advanced course like a National Certificate (NC), National Qualification (NQ) or Scottish Vocational Qualification (SVQ) you can apply for either an EMA or a college bursary to finance your studies.

You should check the financial allowances you are entitled to before you decide what to claim. Read the information in ‘Funding full time further education’ on PlanIT Plus.

And another thing to bear in mind is that you’ll probably have to learn to combine work and college:

·         Around 60% of 16 and 17 year olds in full time education also have a part time job.

3.   Going into work based training

There are some national training programmes to help you get into a job or improve your job skills.

Modern apprenticeships and Skillseekers

Modern apprenticeships and Skillseekers are now the main routes to employment for people straight from school. There are currently around 35,000 young people in work based training in Scotland:

·         29,000 modern apprentices

·         6,000 Skillseekers

You can train as a modern apprentice in over eighty different jobs:

·         You are an employee earning a wage of £80 to £125 a week

·         You train part time towards a recognised qualification: usually a Scottish Vocational Qualification (SVQ) level 2, roughly equivalent to Standard grades at Credit level or Intermediate 2, or SVQ level 3, roughly equivalent to Highers.

Most Skillseekers trainees are employed by the company they work for, though some are non employed trainees:

·         You would be paid a minimum of £55 a week while on a work placement, though some are paid over £100 a week

·         You train part time, usually towards an SVQ at level 1 or 2.

The Skillseekers programme will gradually be phased out as the modern apprenticeship programme is extended to SVQ Level 2.

Get Ready for Work

This programme supports young people to learn new skills and get the confidence they need to move into work, learning or further training:

·         You get paid an allowance of at least £55 a week

·         You get training in a range of skills and can try out ‘work tasters’ to help you to decide what’s best for you.

4.   Going straight into a job

It’s not that easy to find a job straight from school. More and more employers are looking for a flexible workforce, so part time jobs and temporary or short term contracts are becoming more and more common.

However, vacancies do exist. But remember that many of them will also be Skillseeker or modern apprenticeship options, which guarantee training towards nationally recognised qualifications. This does not apply to all vacancies.

To make the most of your chances of finding a job that suits you should:

·         Prepare your CV

·         Get ready to take the initiative, get networking and contact employers that you think might have suitable vacancies

·         Brush up on your interview technique.

And make sure you contact your local careers Scotland Centre for information on local opportunities and for help with the skills involved in looking for a job.

5.   More information and advice

Remember that you can always speak to your pastoral care, pupil support or guidance teacher and careers adviser for more information and advice about your options after S4.

6.   School leaving dates

In Scotland you can only legally leave school at one of the two official school leaving dates that apply to all pupils:

·         31 May if your 16^th birthday falls between March and September

·         the last day of term in December if your 16^th birthday falls between 1 October and the end of February

However, it is sometimes possible for pupils who are due to leave in December to spend their last term (August to December) at college rather than at school, doing a course that lasts 18 weeks or more. Your head teacher must give you permission before this can happen, and give the college evidence of this too.

7.   Keeping your parents or carers informed

You will already be familiar with the new courses and qualifications, but your parents or carers may not be. The information below will help to give them some basic information about how the Scottish qualifications system currently works.

Also remember that you can help them to support you in your decision by talking it through with them and making them aware of your options.

The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF)

The SQA is Scotland’s national body for awarding qualifications. All Scottish qualifications are also placed at a level within the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework which is designed to help you understand and compare qualifications.

Students are able to take a mix of subjects at different levels and can still take five subjects in S5. Normally the level students take in S5 is determined by the level they reached at Standard Grade.

In school, the types of courses your son or daughter will be choosing at this stage include:

·         Standard Grades: awarded at Foundation, General and Credit level (SCQF levels 3, 4 and 5). Courses at Access 1, 2 and 3, for students who need some extra support, are assessed by the school, there are no outside exams.

·         Intermediate 1 and 2 (SCQF levels 4 and 5): sometimes offered as an alternative to Standard Grades as a stepping stone to Highers

·         Highers (SCQF level 6)

And Advanced Highers are an option they could consider in S6, depending on their Higher results.

National courses and units

There are still national units and courses in all the traditional subjects which have always been studied in school. However, for students who have a good idea of what they would like to do when they leave school, there’s often a choice of units and courses in subjects related to their future career too.

Core skills

Core skills are the essential skills that help people in all aspects of their learning, training, work and life. Students develop their core skills in the course of all national qualifications and are assessed in them. The five core skills are:

·         Communication (oral and written)

·         Numeracy (using number and using graphical information)

·         Problem Solving (critical thinking, planning and organising, and reviewing and evaluating)

·         Information Communication Technology (accessing information and providing or creating information)

·         Working with Others (working cooperatively working others and reviewing cooperative contribution)

Progression

National qualifications give students the chance to build up a recognised qualification while allowing them room to try out something different. So your son or daughter could move on at a pace that suits them: from Standard Grades at Credit Level to Highers and Advanced Highers or maybe move from Intermediate 2 to Highers, for example.

Your son or daughter should choose subjects in S5 and S6 carefully as these may affect their future career options. You can get more information on courses from schools, colleges, Careers Scotland Centres and the Scottish Qualifications Authority.