Undergraduate Student Review

It was very enjoyable because there were multiple activities and discussion groups throughout. All the facilitators and guest speakers were friendly, enthusiastic and welcoming. It was quite tiring as the days were very long and jam-packed and sometimes we were given too long for the discussion/activity and so it became awkward. It felt like a worthwhile endeavour and made me feel a lot more excited and informed about my future! I enjoyed meeting new like-minded people also.

It genuinely felt as if the facilitators and guest speakers were happy to have us there and excited about the prospects of us coming to train with them. The ambassadors in particular seemed enthusiastic about our potential and their own apparent happiness was really insightful. Speaking using 'when' rather than 'if' was reassuring as it felt as if they were expecting us to succeed in our applications and were hopeful on our behalf. It did feel at times as if STEM students were valued more highly than humanities students and the extra opportunities available to STEM were plugged a little too much when they are not relevant to everyone present.

There was plenty of opportunity to ask questions at every juncture and to every speaker from each role. All the answers given were detailed and they always checked the question-asker was satisfied. When there were technical difficulties they were handled efficiently. When questions couldn't be answered by that particular person they didn't just say 'I don't know' but gave advice on who to ask/where to look for the answer which was still helpful. The slideshows were comprehensive and informative.

Though not necessarily relevant to my degree at the moment, the sessions certainly increased my motivation to be proactive with planning and preparing for my future. I felt as if I developed skills such as self-evaluation and giving feedback in the group activities which will be very useful in both my degree and further career in teaching. Having the resources (such as slides and the handbook) will be relevant when considering my own skills and when it comes to application.

Besides the occasional technical hitch which cannot be avoided the sessions themselves had very clear outlines of what was to happen and what we were meant to do. The timing's could have been more accurate as sometimes we were given too much time for the group discussions or activities which created an awkward atmosphere. On the whole the timings were good though and you could definitely tell the structure was well thought out and the facilitators were confident in what they were doing.

I could not have asked for a better mix of people to be in the sessions. There was a range of subjects, backgrounds and experiences which allowed for stimulating discussion. The students were, in general motivated, prepared and willing to engage in the activities and conversations. It was a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere created by the group leaders, ambassadors, opportunity pitchers etc. and they appeared to be interested in what we had to say as well as passionate about their messages.

They had clearly invested a significant amount of time in creating the resources available to us in the handbook and the session material. They spent a lot of time with us and were ready to go above and beyond when it came to answering questions or explaining things further to us. The individual feedback given was a huge investment and analysis into our personal development and growth throughout the sessions which will hopefully be replicated in the future.

Before the insight I had a relatively good idea about what training with the company would involve but after completing it I feel as if I understand it fully. Not only the programme itself, but the application process, all the stages and delivery of training, selection process and expectations of us. Everyone was completely transparent about their processes and what their roles entailed, it was also helpful to get real-life testimonials from training graduates (ambassadors) as they gave an accurate picture of their own lived experience.

The company's ethos and motivations were thoroughly explained and backed up with statistics and personal anecdotes. Everyone who spoke, spoke honestly (from what I can ascertain) about their experience and what it meant to them. They were open about how difficult the training is and how perseverance is essential whilst also maintaining that there were hugely fulfilling elements of the job that balance it out. It felt like a welcoming and supportive culture that is designed with the trainees in mind.

I was already determined to become a teacher but my pathway was undecided. It still is, but to a much lesser extent as I am almost completely convinced by TeachFirst that I want to train with them (as opposed to gaining a more traditional PGCE). I have now learnt in its entirety how everything works and what is involved in the training which really appeals to me and has inspired me to definitely try my hand at applying.

No need as it was online and during the term holidays.

There was a huge range of different people from the company who were willing to be contacted and several representatives from partner companies who were looking to recruit tutors to give a hand with gaining experience. The people speaking ranged from marketing and outreach teams to CEOs of companies, meaning a variety of opportunities were available and experience to be shared. There was adequate time to have conversations with speakers outside of their allotted activity or presentation.

Super informative! There were technical difficulties at times meaning a couple of sessions were cut short and not all questions could be answered but that's no fault of the organisers or speakers. Everyone was interesting and passionate about what they had to offer whether that be information about their experience or a volunteering opportunity. Two of the opportunities were very similar and so there were few questions to ask the second one which became somewhat awkward since the time wasn't filled properly.

Yes definitely. There were a plethora of partner organisations that spoke with us about volunteering opportunities they could offer and exactly how to get involved. We were also given recommendations for books and further reading pertaining to teaching and other things that could be useful or of interest to us. It was explained how to practice and recognise competency skills outside of the classroom in our personal and professional lives. Opportunities we could go on to do post-training were also shown to us and speakers from them were brought in.

Obviously only if they were interested in pursuing a career in teaching and specifically looking into TeachFirst but yes. A lot of invaluable information and advice was given to us and it really gave insight and a better understanding (and therefore chance) at the application process and training programme itself. The benefits and difficulties were explained fairly and in full, it didn't feel like they were selling themselves under false pretences at all. It felt genuinely useful and informative and I feel much better equipped to make my decision about applying now.