Careers Brief - Public Services FdA

Overview

The Foundation degree in Public Services offers you the opportunity for progression onto an Honours degree programme and direct job entry.

This broad-based qualification provides you with both an understanding of how the public sector operates and relevant skill training, which could lead to a wide range of career opportunities.

With success on your course, you will have demonstrated the key employability skills and competencies in demand by employers. Key personal employability skills such as: team work, written and verbal communication, problem-solving, IT, numeracy and time management. You can improve your prospects by gaining appropriate work experience (or industrial placement).

For an overview of related industry sectors, go to National Guidance Research Forum for 'LMI Future trends' and 'Sectors covered'.

Go to the website links below to find out more.

Be aware that many graduate recruiters with graduate entry training programmes have application closing dates in the Autumn Term of the final year. If you plan to continue onto a one-year top-up honours degree or final year honours degree, you should be prepared for job-hunting before you start your final year.

Go to the Employability section of this Careers Guide for more help and advice.

Further Study

You may be able to apply for a Top-up degree. Top-up degrees are designed as a direct progression from a Foundation degree to achieve an Honours (or Ordinary) degree, though entry may be selective.

Alternatively, you could transfer onto a related Honours degree course. Year of entry would depend on your grades, experience and overlap between courses but could be the final year.

Progression onto the one-year BSc (Hons) Public Services Top-up at the University of Plymouth may be a possibility, dependent on results.

Other institutions offering related Top-ups include:

Anglia Ruskin University; Blackburn College; Bradford College; University of Central Lancashire; Farnborough College of Technology; University of Kent; Loughborough College; University of Wolverhampton.

To search degree courses go to www.ucas.com/ (UCAS - Universities and Colleges Admissions Service for the UK). Use the links to university/college sites for course details.

You will need to use UCAS to apply for courses. Contact the Course Tutor of your chosen course to find out your position, before you make your formal application.

Find out how much this will cost you. Where is the funding coming from? Go to the university/college links for course costs and finance and to the section Financial support for additional help.

Alternatively, you could consider 'topping up' your Foundation degree to Honours through distance learning with the Open University. You could be awarded up to 240 credits and then only need 120 credits of OU study at level 3, to achieve an Honours degree. This would also give you the opportunity to take up employment. Go to www.open.ac.uk/ to search undergraduate courses and credit transfer.

With a good Honours degree (First or 2.1), you may progress onto an appropriate higher level Masters and/or PhD doctorate. This could be to develop your area of study to a more in-depth practical and/or academic level or to gain other specialist training.

For information on postgraduate study and finance, go to the national online directory at www.prospects.ac.uk/study.htm .

Go to the main section Further Study of this Guide for more information and help.

Useful Links

http://mycareerhub.bournemouth.ac.uk/

Bournemouth University Graduate Employment Service - job news, campus events, part-time work, placement, graduate jobs, ask a question, book an appointment

www.prospects.ac.uk/starting_out.htm

Graduate Prospects - national careers website for HE students studying in the UK:

Drop down 'Careers advice' for 'Options with your subject'

Drop down 'Jobs and work experience' for 'What jobs would suit me?' using Prospects Planner

http://nextstep.direct.gov.uk/

Next Step careers site - go to sub-heading 'Planning your career' for 'Job Profiles'

http://targetjobs.co.uk/career-sectors

GTI Media publication for graduate jobs and careers advice

www.civilservice.gov.uk/

Civil Service

www.lgcareers.com/

Careers in Local government