"The Centre for Lifelong Learning this year celebrates thirty years of our 2+2 degree programme. The University of Warwick welcomed its first 2+2 students in 1991 with the desire to provide students without traditional qualifications the opportunity to study for their degree. Since then, we have welcomed many committed students with the desire to achieve a degree qualification and further their careers. Our students have a wealth of personal and professional experience which enriches our learning community here in CLL. Each year, my colleagues and I are incredibly proud of our students, balancing their studies alongside their work and family commitments, none more so than this year. I am delighted to see that our 2+2 programme continues to be highly valued by the University, while bringing opportunities for education and growing employability within the local community."

Professor Ruth Hewston, Head of Department

Hear from current students, alumni and staff members about their experience of the 2+2 degree pathway.

Students on our MA programme in Career Development and Coaching Studies attended a virtual mini job fair put together by the CLL team to help them to plan their next career move.

In the course, students learn knowledge and skills which they can use to help others to develop their careers, but over a series of sessions the focus was on them as they were invited to consider their own career plans and find out more about a range of options.

We heard from our guest speakers about their careers in the fields of careers work in a Chinese university, career coaching, recruitment and HR. Students were able to ask questions and get expert advice to inform their next career move. The focus on labour markets in Asia reflects the nationality of many of our students, but also the importance of this market for anyone in careers and human resources work.

We were joined by Adrian Jones, Business Director of Hays Globalink Asia who spoke about his career in recruitment and his work in supporting businesses in Asia to engage talent and in helping people return to or enter the major Asian markets. Danni Wu, Human Resources Business Partner at Far East Horizon, a leading Financial Services company based in Shanghai, shared her perspective on the Business Partnering model in HR and her career rise within Decathlon and her recent move into a new sector. Our CDCS alumna, Lassi Chen, talked about how she is using her learning from Warwick in her role as a Senior HR Officer in Learning and Development with Sodexo, also based in Shanghai.

In a follow up session, we will be joined by Sindy Mei who will join us from Beijing to share her experiences of careers work in a top Chinese university, as well as her more recent work as an independent career coach.

Students have fed back that attending Careers in Careers has given them a clearer idea of the options that are open to then after the course, and some great links have been forged with people who are able and willing to support them in pursuing those options.

In a recent seminar, Phil McCash paid tribute to the seminal work of Bill Law whose work is known to many in the career development field. Phil argued that Bill’s ideas were ahead of their time in their focus on the role of gender and ethnicity in career development along with other community influences. The role of learning in the work of career development professionals was also emphasised. Bill Law, it was argued, helped us better understand the who, what, how, where, and why of career development.

A written copy and video recording of Phil’s presentation are available here:
https://warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/about/cllteam/pmccash/mccash_nicec_seminar_bill_law_retrospective_08_2020.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF_pDgLWXWo

Dr Phil McCash is a supervisor on the doctoral programme in the Centre for Lifelong Learning at the University of Warwick. This innovative programme offers doctoral study to a range of people-focused professions including career development work, coaching, and counselling.

More information about the programme and how to apply is available here:
https://warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/research/study/ 

At the end of term one, the University ran an end of term survey to assess how the changes to teaching and learning had been received by current students. We are delighted to share the fantastic results from this survey. Students commended the support they had received from their personal tutors and staff at CLL.

A huge congratulations to students from Early Childhood, Social Studies, Career Development and Coaching Studies and Career Education, Information and Guidance in HE, on completing their studies!

While we were sad that we were unable to physically celebrate Winter Graduation this year, it was lovely to celebrate online with a few of our students.

Here, Gill Frigerio, Associate Professor, Career Studies and Coaching Programmes, congratulates our students on their achievements.

"Congratulations to all the students who were given awards at our November exam boards, whether it be a Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring, a Postgrad Award in Careers Leadership or a Masters in Career Development and Coaching Studies! We were delighted to be able to mark the occasion with some students on Monday, in lieu of the actual graduation ceremonies for MA graduates that would have taken place this week. We heard from students who have been awarded PG Certificates, Diplomas and MAs about their learning from the course and how they are taking creative and innovative steps in their practice as a result. We have all been working in challenging circumstances over the last year and for these students to have concluded their studies in this period is an even bigger achievement. Well done everyone!"