School pupils who gained work experience in a special programme have been congratulated in a graduation ceremony.

They, their parents, mentors and members of the local Career Ready board enjoyed the ceremony at PDMS Ltd’s headquarters at the Isle of Man Business Park in Douglas.

Nine of the 14 students officially graduated from the Career Ready programme on the night, while the rest will receive their certificates through their school.

Lorna Trevethan, Career Ready’s coordinator, put the students on the spot when presenting the certificates with the Minister for Education, Graham Cregeen, by asking them a few questions about their experiences and what they believed they had improved the most with.

The answer they all agreed on was that their confidence had grown.

So, what is Career Ready?

The Career Ready programme offers practical learning to help young people develop the skills they need for a career in information technology and is linked to their academic studies or interests.

The Career Ready programme has been running in the island since 2014 and involves Ramsey Grammar School, Queen Elizabeth II High School, Castle Rushen, Ballakermeen and St Ninian’s, along with University College Isle of Man. Classroom learning is combined with direct contact with the workplace and employers.

The Career Ready programme consists of four pillars - masterclasses, mentoring, workplace visits and internships.

It provides the opportunity for schools, colleges and employers to work together in highly productive ways to develop future talent pipelines, to ensure the curriculum is meeting local employer skill needs and to help transform young people’s career pathways.

The Career Ready students were all allocated a four- to six-week paid internship over the summer at companies including: Hansard Global, PDMS, IT works, GTS, WiManx, Futuretech, Netcetera and Isle of Man Post Office.

The summer internship offers the students an opportunity to experience working in the IT industry developing their employability and enhancing their skills.

Mrs Trevethan is currently seeking employers who can provide a four-week summer placement to the current cohort of 14 students.

If your company would like to support this programme, get in touch with Mrs Trevethan on [email protected]

Businesses involved:

The Career Ready initiative has been backed by the Department of Education and is also supported by employers on the Isle of Man.

These include: PDMS, Hansard Global, GTS, AFD Software, IT Works, WiManx, Future Tech Ltd, Netcetera, Isle of Man Post Office, Annexico, Galileo Fund Services Ltd, government departments: e-gaming, project managers, network architects, e-business managers, Lloyds banking group, Zurich and Caledonia Ltd.