Are you not applying for jobs because your qualifications aren’t good enough? If so, then don’t despair – there is much you can do to improve your situation.
If you look in the right places, you will soon find that there are courses for just about everything – from basic literacy and numeracy right the way through to foreign languages for businesses, medicine and engineering. When it comes down to it, the choice is yours to make.
Here’s a brief summary of what’s available, how you qualify for it and where you can get it.
Adult Literacy and Adult Numeracy
If you struggled with words or numbers at school, getting any kind of skilled work must be proving difficult. Don’t put up with it – get some free help in basic skills. Start by talking to a consultant (free) on 0800 660800 (7 days a week).
GCSE and A-level
Many kids leave school with poor passes. If you haven’t got at least a Grade C in Maths and English, you are going to find your career progress severely hampered. Free help is on hand, though. If you’re under 25, you probably qualify for a TEC course: Level 2 is about equal to a GCSE and Level 3 an A-level. If you want something more ‘hands-on’, go for an NVQ.
If you don’t speak English very well
Are you receiving Benefit or Financial Support? If so, and you don’t have a good grasp of English, you can take classes to improve – all at the expense of the Skills Fund Agency. Exactly what is available can be found on their website.
As a rough rule of thumb, you should qualify for these courses if you are getting any of the following:
- Council Tax Benefit
- Guaranteed Credit but not Pension Credit
- Housing Benefit
- Income-related Employment / Support Allowance
- Income Support
- Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Working Tax Credit – gross household income must be under £15,276
You are also eligible if you are unemployed and are financially dependent on someone who gets one of these.
Asylum seekers
Free tuition (especially in English) can be available but there are conditions.
If you don’t wish to approach an official source or want to keep your studying completely private, why not check out the BBC Education website? They have a multitude of courses – some online some via the television or radio.
Don’t let not having qualifications stop you from applying for jobs – your new employer may even be prepared to sponsor you through your studies. They probably get the course for free, anyway! Besides which, having a company behind you and a job that’s yours will give you motivation and direction.
From an employer’s point of view, a worker who shows enough gumption and initiative to get off their rear end and do something about making them a more viable employee, is a very attractive proposition. If you are reading this wondering if I’m losing it, you should try seeing some of the dismal specimens who regularly present themselves for jobs which they don’t really want as it will interfere with their daytime sleeping habits. If you demonstrate signs of being go-getting to an interviewer, if they’ve any sense they should snap you up in no time. Try it.
You could also leave it until you’ve got the course underway. Being able to say things in the interview like:
“Well, I’m currently on a … course in …”
“Actually, I’m studying for a …, now”
… and so on.
Don’t think you are too old to study – you’re not (and notice I didn’t qualify it by including an age).
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