NCS Students Enjoy Exciting Day at Sky Studios

Students from the Trust’s National Citizen Service (NCS) programme recently made the short trip over to Sky Studios in Osterley for a careers opportunities day.

On Friday 25 November the Trust’s NCS team took over 60 students from three local schools and ten of our dedicated changemakers to the Sky Campus in Osterley.

The trip was part of the Changemakers Programme and students spent the day learning about career opportunities at Sky, networking and trying out first hand some of the state of the art studio and production facilities available at the campus.

The main theme of the day was employability and kicked off with keynote speaker John Ryley. As Head of Sky News and with over 35 years of broadcast journalism experience, John is one of the most prominent voices in the world of news media. In his talk he peeled back the curtain on how social action news stories have been covered over the last few years and how that has impacted the news landscape.

Next came an incredible story from Isaac Nartey, co-creator of Bafta Award winning TV series, Life & Rhymes. An accomplished poet himself, Isaac talked about his professional career in such an inspirational way. 

Over lunch participants took part in a quick informal careers carousel. Dotted around the lunch space were Sky employees from a number of departments, from Corporate Social Responsibility to Sports, News, HR, Marketing and Finance.

There was a particular presence of recent graduates and apprentices, including Keziah Williams who attended Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School in Greenford. Keziah is now in her second year of a Finance & Accountancy (CIMA) level 7 apprenticeship at Sky and spoke to a number of students on the day. 

Following lunch students were taken on a behind the scenes tour of the campus and production space, before heading to the Sky Up Academy Studios for some recording sessions.

The day culminated with a presentation from the Early Careers team, who talked about the different routes into a career with Sky. This ranged from the Ignite Programme, Creative Access entry for graduates all the way through to the apprenticeship roles available. There was a big emphasis on the application process, including preparing for an interview, which left the students enthused and inspired.

Reflecting on the visit, Margaret Sowa, Academic Administrator, UCAS and Enrichment Advisor at The Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School Sixth Form, said, “The day was fantastically organised and ran flawlessly from start to finish. It definitely showcased Sky as an excellent place to work, very vibrant and full of creative people. I am sure that some of our students will be seriously considering applying there for one of many exciting roles and programmes they offer. We are really grateful for being included in the invitation and getting this opportunity.”