Novelist, corporate communications expert and freelance writer, Chris Corbett hosted a virtual careers talk on Wednesday 10 February with Coulsdon Sixth Form College A Level English Language and Literature students.

Originally planned as a visit to college on a book launch tour, Chris instead spoke virtually from his home in Zurich to students who have been doing creative and non-fiction writing for 20% of their A Level qualification.

Chris discussed aspects of his corporate work, from starting out to working as a freelance writer. He also worked in the IT, Finance, Pharmaceuticals and Insurance sectors as a writer for employee publications and even marketing materials. He has written short stories in addition to blog posts, a screenplay, and fiction and non-fiction pieces.

Asked by a student ‘what was his greatest professional achievement’, Chris replied ‘All of it’ and that ‘the journey is the destination’ as he worked with such wonderful people in various jobs and had learnt so much. He gave several helpful suggestions to aid students including joining a local writer’s group, writing on LinkedIn, networking and starting small with a writing job that may lead to other things.

Chris has also kindly offered 3 signed copies of his novel Nirvana Blues as prizes for a student competition where they are challenged to write either non-fiction or fiction on the topic of ‘Aspirations and Adventures’. Entries are to be sent by email to kathy.miller@coulsdon.ac.uk by Sunday 28 February.

Commenting on his talk to the students, Chris said ‘I’ve really enjoyed talking to such a fantastic bunch of students! Thanks so much for letting me share with you a bit about the writing life – I really liked hearing all the good questions.’

Adrian Price, Head of Faculty for English and Humanities said ‘Chris provided such a valuable talk to our students. It was wide ranging in looking at both the corporate and freelance aspects of writing as well as writing novels.’

Kathy Miller, English teacher mentioned ‘In what has been a difficult academic term for students, this was a great way to start half term with a renewed purpose to write!’

If you missed the virtual talk, you can catch up below.

Information for schools

Croydon College Group offers a wide range of activities to provide support to schools, parents, carers and students with post-16 decisions. Through activities both at the college and onsite at local schools, the diverse range of courses on offer at Croydon College, Coulsdon Sixth Form College and Croydon University Centre is explored.

Information is provided on the various opportunities available for both vocational and academic pathways. This, combined with the wide range of apprenticeships, delivered by the World of Work team, provides an important resource for post-16 options. 

Contact the team at schoolpartnerships@coulsdon.ac.uk or phone us on 020 8686 5700 ext. 3676 for more information.

Let’s work together:

Assemblies and Presentations

Delivered at your school and providing either a general overview of courses available or tailored specifically to the needs and interests of the student year group in attendance. Focus subjects could include apprenticeships, applying to universities, T Levels or sector-specific subjects.

Career Events & Options Evenings

Virtual or in-person we welcome the opportunity to support your events and engage with students and parents. Our team can also be available to attend application and interview workshops also GCSE results day. 

Onsite Taster Sessions

Engaging and interactive sessions with specialist lecturers in areas including criminology, fashion and textiles, media studies, music performance, photography, science and much more. Sessions can be held on-site at our colleges or at your school. Please enquire about specific subjects.

Campus Tours

Your students can tour our campuses, chat with members of the teams and explore our range of departments and facilities. Building your own tour, allows you to choose the areas your students are keen to view the most, and with a large course offering, this ensures they get the most out of their visit and enough time to ask any questions they may have.

The Programme can also help to support evidence of careers activity provision in relation to the Gatsby Benchmarks.

Croydon Colleges Group is always pleased to build strong relationships with local schools and sixth forms and produce a newsletter to keep schools and sixth forms up to date with the exciting work of School  Partnership Programme

To discuss your requirements further or to be added to the mailing list, please contact: schoolpartnerships@coulsdon.ac.uk or call 020 8686 5700 ext. 3676.

 

Get in touch

Tel: 01737 551 176
Fax: 01737 551 282
Email: enquiries@coulsdon.ac.uk

Coulsdon Sixth Form College
Placehouse Lane
Old Coulsdon
Surrey
CR5 1YA

 

 

Using this site

Website by Pinksheep Marketing

© Copyright Coulsdon Sixth Form College
All Rights Reserved