My name is Korben Simpson. I am currently a college student at Prior Pursglove College. As part of my Career Ready Program I have completed a two week internship at RCVDA.
Throughout my time at RCVDA I have gained a wide range of skills and knowledge, benefitting me not only in future employment, but life itself. For instance on my first day I spent the morning learning what a hire agreement looks like, how to file one and the numerous uses of a printer. These may seem simple tasks but with no previous acknowledgment of hire agreements it was refreshing to learn something new. I then was thrown head first into compliance, which for some would be a nightmare, but for me was, although steep, a fascinating learning curve; it was here I became aware of the difference between an invoice and a bank statement and how to prepare such things for the accountants.
Alongside the practical skills, compliance also emphasised the importance of resilience and perseverance. This showed me that no matter how much I want to rush through something to get it done, by doing so I am guaranteed to miss something or make an error that with a little more patience I would have never encountered. Compliance also helped me improve my analysis skills, as I had to process large amounts of information and pick out key parts very quickly and accurately in order to be as efficient as possible in my work.
My next tasks revolved around DBS checks. Firstly, due to my little amount of experience with DBS, I simply did research on what it was. This included why we need it, how to keep it up to date, and where people can get one. Following this, my task was to access old DBS checks and organise them onto Google Sheets. Once again another learning experience as I have never used Sheets before. Luckily everyone was more than happy to help, so after a quick crash course, I was well on my way.
Afterwards was the Career’s Ready Presentation, my most nerve-racking project of the internship. Within the presentation I had to talk about what I was hoping to learn from my experience with RCVDA, what I had learned from RCVDA, and the projects that I had completed within my time with them, I had five minutes to do so. I will admit I did go over my timing, but to summarise all I had learned in the time would of been impossible. By doing this I further increased my confidence in communication, and my ability to present a presentation as a whole
Overall my time with RCVDA was an enlightening experience of how little I really know about the real world, due to being in full time education my entire life, I have never needed to know the things that I have learned on my internship. However I am exceptionally grateful to both RCVDA and Career Ready for giving me the opportunity to come and experience the world of work. My two weeks here have been much more rewarding than I could of imagined not only expanding my knowledge on the areas I do know, but also opening my eyes on the areas I don’t know and giving me the foundations I require to go on and build a wealth of knowledge in those areas, helping me prepare for the world outside of education.
I would like to end by saying a great big thank you to everyone at RCVDA for giving me this experience, and rekindling my love for our area. You were such a warm and welcoming group of people, and an absolute pleasure to work with.
