Introduction
My name is Alexander Bushby, I am 15 years old and go to school at Banchory academy. As a 15 year old it’s extremely difficult to choose subjects that are relevant to a career, when you have no idea what that career will be. Many of my peers face a similar problem and struggle choosing the right qualification when they finish high school. This is why I think work experience is so important to young teenagers deciding on their future career choices as it can provide life changing knowledge influencing and inspiring them to become something they never thought they could. I was excited at the prospect of gaining work experience at Watermans Accident Claims and Care, because my interests revolve around sport and martial arts and I heard from my uncle that the company supports many Scottish sport ambassadors.
My week
My first day here at Watermans has been hard work from the get go. The day begun with a quick tour of the office where I met all staff, then I am put straight to work. Morning consisted mainly of filing, sorting files, removing files and adding files. I never realised filing could be this important. Later in the day, I learned of different marketing channels Watermans uses to keep in touch with their clients and followers. This meeting has given me the opportunity to find out lots of information on the charities and sporting events Watermans support which I was really keen to hear. After my marketing brief I was doing the mail which was much easier than filing and didn’t take too long. By far my hardest day of the week was the first day.
I slightly feared my second day because I was really tired after filing the day before. However, the accounting team to which I was assigned to have a very comforting atmosphere, so I spent the day writing and posting cheques which was much enjoyable. I wrote lots of cheques and it helped me with paying attention to detail. My third day in the office was very similar to the 2nd; I spend most of my time sorting cheques, which by far was my favourite task of the week.
Thursday for me was a day of learning. The day started with a trip to Glasgow, where I had meetings with the administrative department and learned a great deal of health and safety regulations to put into use later. I spent most of the day placing medical records onto a case which again helped me with paying attention to detail. Jasvinder, one of the secretaries, took me through my last assignment and gave valued feedback. It was good to hear positive comments, which gave me direction on things I was unsure about. At this point I had nailed working the coffee machine.
One the last day, I finished my week at Watermans in the marketing department, where I assisted in writing this blog. I am hoping sharing my experience will encourage teenagers to take part in work experience to help them choose a suitable school qualification.
What I am taking away
The past week has given me a great insight to what the future has in store for me! It was very interesting to learn about the different types of roles in Watermans Accident Claims and Care and nice to see how much effort and time management were investing in staff members, which made me feel important. I have met some incredibly inspiring individuals, who faced the same problems when they were young, which made me feel at ease. I am no longer afraid of not knowing where I want to be in few years from now and looking forward to sharing my experience at Watermans with friends and family. I am swayed to say, teenagers should participate in a similar program; it’s not such a big bad world out there after all.
Thanks again for a great week, Watermans.