Name: Doreen
Course: PG Certificate in Career Development and Coaching Studies

Doreen completed the PG Certificate in Career Development and Coaching Studies in 2019 and now works as a Careers Consultant for The Careers Group, based at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Before embarking on the PG Certificate, Doreen's career was predominantly within the Third sector, developing and delivering employability and skills development programmes. She spent 7 years art the Hammersmith and Fulham Volunteer Centre managing a range of programmes for the BAME community, young people and low-income families.

Doreen was drawn to studying at Warwick because of the flexibility the course offered. She was working full-time and was seeking an opportunity to study part-time, flexibly and with a distance learning option and CLL offered all 3! Doreen shared that the 2 day residential was her best memory of the course as "this was an opportunity to meet with other careers students face-to-face, share our experiences and learn from each other. The relationships built last beyond the course and I am still in touch with students who attended the residential." Doreen particularly enjoyed the mix of theoretical learning and practical application of the course, which enabled her to develop as a Careers professional.

Doreen has now been in her current role for 6 months. When asked what her typical day looks like, she responded,

"No two days are ever the same, which is part of what I enjoy about my role. However a typical day would usually consist of seeing a number of students who have booked 121 career coaching appointments, followed by a departmental workshop to Earth Sciences students on using LinkedIn as part of their career strategy. My afternoon could then be spent supporting one of our Central Careers events (such as a Jobs Fair) by managing the Careers stand and speaking to students about the service and what support is available to them."

Doreen would recommend the course to anyone and admits that she would have found her job much harder without undertaking this qualification and her transition from the Third Sector to HE Careers is largely due to obtaining this qualification:

"The Career Development Theories module expanded my understanding of how individuals perceive careers, which has subsequently enabled me to provide a better coaching service to the students I see."

Find out more about our courses in Career Development and Coaching studies here.