By Shamar Blunt
In what might have been the final career showcase before The Ursuline Convent School closes its doors in another five months, 80 students on Friday got the opportunity to explore a wide range of potential job opportunities for the future.
They were exposed to possible careers in the security forces, culinary arts, graphics design, health and wellness, and film development, among other areas.
Principal Cheryl Wade told Barbados TODAY that teachers, supported by parents, decided to expose students to a variety of job prospects given the changing and modern work environment they will eventually enter.
“You have to identify the things the children might be interested in but you also have to look beyond that because there are so many different opportunities now. It’s [no longer] just about being a lawyer or a doctor; there is a graphics person [that] does so many different things; the flower arranger. We don’t normally have that but you have to explore things beyond what the children might have imagined,” she explained.
Wade said the career showcase was initially planned for fifth-form students but a decision was taken to include other year groups.
“We said let’s bring everybody because at some point they will all have to find careers, whether working for somebody or working for yourself. It’s really a culmination of what we have been preparing our fifth formers for all term,” she added.
It was announced in May last year, that after 128 years of delivering education to many students in Barbados, the private school would shut down in August 2023.
Despite the school being in the last few months of existence, Wade proudly framed the career initiative as a success, as students had been actively involved in the presentations and wanted to stay for longer than the 15 minutes allotted per station.
The principal said she was also impressed by the various presenters.
Head Girl Kyla Boyce was thankful for the showcase.
“I thought it was very beneficial for us to do. It’s been really informative,” she said, adding that her class had interacted with several professionals, including a chef and an accountant as well as members of the Barbados Defence Force.
St Ursuline Convent.
“It was really good to be up close and personal and ask different questions. I was really happy that our school could offer this to us,” Boyce said.
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