Westminster Institute of Education (WIE)

WIE Undergraduate Courses:

“What can I do with my subject?” is a question often asked by students visiting the Careers and Employment Centre. All of the WIE degree subjects equip you with a range of transferable skills that employers are keen to see in their applicants and therefore your degree provides you with a wide range of opportunities. 70% of advertised jobs do not specify a degree discipline – so whether you want to use your subject or not there are options open to you.

In the past graduates from your school have been employed in the Education, Media, Finance, Public and many other sectors – check out the Sector Briefings on the Graduate Prospects site for more information. Often students and graduates have a job title in mind but have only a vague idea about what the job entails. Look at the occupational profiles on Prospects if you want to see job descriptions and other information sources about a specific job title.

You can also think about developing your career in a different way by considering further study – this might be a Masters course continuing the theme of your undergraduate studies. But remember there are lots of professions that welcome graduates with degrees from other subjects e.g.:

Law, Social Work, Accountancy, Psychology, Teaching

Most of these professions will require you to do some kind of postgraduate conversion course or professional exams. This can be an expensive option but it is important to know that you these options are still available to you.

Work experience...

….is essential whatever job you have in mind. All employers tell us that they are looking for graduates who have done other things besides their degree. ANY job or voluntary work will give you the skills that employers want – team work, communication, time management etc etc. However, if you want a job in the media you will need directly relevant work experience – anything from writing for the student newspaper, setting up your own websites, assisting at the local or student radio station to the more formal placements offered by large media organisations. For more information about work experience, skills development and transferable skills see Finding a Job and Applying for a Job.

Click on your subject for more specific information:

Communication, Media and Culture
English Language and Linguistics
Early Childhood Studies
Education and Human Development
Educational Practice
Performing Arts
Philosophy
Sport and Coaching Studies
Religion, Culture and Ethics

Communication, Media and Culture

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (journalism, business, teaching). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Other Resources:

English Language and Linguistics

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (law, journalism, business, teaching). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Early Childhood Studies

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (teaching, psychology, social work). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Other resources for careers information and job seeking:

Guardian jobs database
http://www.tda.gov.uk/  if you want to teach
http://www.gttr.ac.uk/  To apply for PGCE course
government childcare careers information
http://www.bps.org.uk/   If you are thinking about psychology conversion

Education and Human Development, Educational Practice

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (teaching, psychology, community work, public policy). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Performing Arts

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (drama, law, business, teaching). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Philosophy

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (law, politics, teaching). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Sport and Coaching Studies

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (teaching, sports science, accountancy). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Religion, Culture and Ethics

The graduates from your course are employed in a range of different jobs. Those who chose to go on to further study reflected this by studying across a range of disciplines (law, politics, teaching). For more ideas take a look at the Options leaflet, downloadable from the Prospects site. And if any of the job titles grab you explore them further by looking at the occupational profiles.

Teacher Training

A comprehensive guide to getting a teaching job is published by Prospects – you can read it on-line or download it on PDF here. The guide also includes a searchable database of Local Authority teaching jobs.

There are several websites that can be used for job seeking and LEAs all have their own vacancy pages.

Here is a sample of vacancy websites:

What if you don’t want to teach?

Every year, for whatever reason, a certain number of students drop out of teaching courses or reach the end and decide that teaching isn’t the career for them. The course has given you a lot of skills that will be useful in many jobs – but you may need help identifying alternative careers or marketing your skills. If you are in this position and want to talk through your decision and see what other options are available, please come and see a Careers Adviser – you can find the opening times here.