Leavers' Destinations and Careers

Careers and Work Experience

Our award-winning Careers Department aims to equip every Oakhamian with all the knowledge and skills they need to make informed decisions about life beyond School.

We are fully committed to providing exceptional careers advice to our pupils throughout their time at Oakham and achieve this by delivering an in-house Careers Programme to support students in:

Making well-informed decisions at key points of academic progression in Forms 3, 4 and 5.
Developing the skills and professional awareness needed to navigate the world of work in the 21st century.
Applying for opportunities post-Oakham, including UK university applications, overseas study and degree apprenticeships.

Pupils take part in taught sessions covering key topics such as interview skills and producing a CV, plus the numerous events we host each year, including a Careers Fair, a Higher Education Fair, UCAS events and workshops with external speakers.

The School works closely with its external partners and contacts, as well as its extensive alumni network, to introduce students to careers and work experience. Many of our students in Form 5 and above undertake work experience placements organised by the Careers Department during the summer holiday, gaining invaluable knowledge and experience in a range of competitive fields.

We are proud of the variety of opportunities our students take following their time with us, including studying at some of the most prestigious universities in the UK and abroad and Degree Apprenticeships with top employers. We also continue to support Old Oakhamians for three years after they leave School.

The Careers Department is led by a full-time Head of Careers and Progression, who is a qualified careers advisor registered with the Careers Development Institute (CDI). We also have a full-time UCAS and Careers Coordinator and a dedicated Work Experience and Apprenticeships Officer, in addition to further coordinators for Oxbridge and Clinical applications.

Leavers’ Destinations

The majority of our students go to top universities in the UK, Europe and the United States, including Oxford, Cambridge, other Russell Group universities, medical schools and many more high-ranking institutions worldwide.

In 2024

88% of applicants are into a university of their choice.
12% have chosen a gap year of travel, volunteering, work experience and 1 student is studying for a prestigious Degree Apprenticeship with Amazon.
The most popular university courses are Business and Management (29), Medicine and Medical Courses (14), Politics and International Relations (15), and History (11).
9 students are at international universities, including IE Madrid, McGill and UBC in Canada, Fordham and Ohio in the USA, Trinity College Dublin in the Republic of Ireland, and Maastricht in the Netherlands.
7 pupils are studying specialist Art and Design courses, among them four who scored a perfect 100% in their Art A-Level.

Careers and Leavers' Support Team

At Oakham, careers education is student-centred and informed by both the Gatsby Benchmarks for good practice and the six areas identified in the Career Development Framework by the Career Development Institute (CDI). It is integrated into all parts of our Connected Curriculum – academic, pastoral and co-curricular learning. It is founded on the Oakham core values, with ‘Connection’ – between aspects of learning, to post-school routes and the needs of the individual – at its heart.
• Linking academic learning to careers is built into the Key Stage 3 IB MYP (Forms 1-3): pupils carry out tasks exploring careers related to their timetabled subjects. Pastoral sessions incorporate coverage of reflection on personal growth and reflection on co-curricular activities. Students become accustomed to logging their activities using Unifrog and exploring their transferable skills. Students also take the Morrisby Careers psychometric profile in Form 3 as they begin to make their GCSE choices.
• In Key Stage Four (Forms 4 and 5), we deliver lessons on writing effective CVs and cover letters. Students undertake the full Morrisby Profile, producing a psychometric report, and this informs one-to-one careers meetings with Level 7 qualified advisers.
• In Key Stage Five (Forms 6 and 7), material is covered by tutorials and the pastoral programme. Students receive advice and guidance about the many post-secondary routes available to them and on transition to their next stage. The Careers Department holds drop-in office hours for application questions and students can also make individual appointments.
The taught element and one-to-one guidance are supplemented and supported by a programme of events, including our work experience opportunities, annual Careers Fair, HE Fair, programme of talks and specialist support for those applying to the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, for clinical courses, and to universities in the USA.

The Careers Department is based in a suite of offices in the main School Library, and also has the use of a satellite office near the Form 7 (Year 13) Boarding Houses which we use for drop-in sessions. The main Library houses our reference material for pupils as well as notice boards displaying information on upcoming events and opportunities.

Employers wishing to contact the Careers and Progression Department should contact Dr R Pearson using the email address rp1@oakham.rutland.sch.uk
Upper School students are led through the UCAS application process within tutorial time and with guidance from the Careers Department. Tutors work closely with students on their university and course choices and are vital in the construction of the personal statement, as well as writing university references.

Students will start to complete their UCAS forms on University Day held in June of Form 6. This day includes workshops, lectures and seminars covering all aspects of university life with representatives from different universities on hand to offer advice.

Help sessions to complete UCAS forms are offered throughout the Winter Term of Form 7 to fit around our busy students’ timetables.
We run a comprehensive programme of activities during Forms 6 and 7 to provide information and support for students interested in applying to university in North America. This programme includes attendance at the annual USA College Day in London, a series of workshops run by international application specialists UES Education, and the ability to attend the annual US College Day held by the Fulbright Commission in London.

We provide support in preparing for the SAT entrance examination, which can also be taken at the School, and also liaise with other specialist organisations to support students. We work with students individually on preparing application essays.
A significant number of Oakhamians go to universities in Europe each year. We are able to offer advice to students on university choices as well as assistance with their applications.

University study in other parts of the world is gaining in popularity and we can offer advice on studying in these destinations as well.

Oxbridge

In the Sixth Form, we encourage all pupils with outstanding GCSE results to consider an application to either Cambridge or Oxford Universities. Some pupils’ ambitions will lie elsewhere, but for those who do wish to make an application, we provide a range of support and guidance.

Our aim is to help Oxbridge aspirants to demonstrate their academic potential in the most effective way possible in their applications. Each applicant is mentored both by a subject specialist in their chosen area of study and the Senior Academic Mentor.

Medical/Clinical courses

Around a dozen Form 7 pupils apply for clinical courses – mainly medicine – each year. We have a busy programme of events and activities for students considering clinical courses, including the Royal School of Medicine Careers Day (held at Oakham), lectures, mock interviews, personal statement workshops and more.

There are Old Oakhamians training to be doctors, veterinary surgeons and dentists at Bristol, Imperial College, Nottingham and Sheffield, among many other UK universities. In addition, former pupils regularly receive offers to study medicine abroad.