BMet business students join influential group of employers

Four rising star students at BMet are making their mark by inspiring leading employers in their role as board members for the Greater Birmingham Professional Services Academy (GBPSA).

Ahmad, Amaan, Amanah and Cameron who are all studying a Level 3 extended diploma in Business courses at BMet 's Matthew Boulton College, have been working with the GBPSA since last February.

The GBPSA is a consortium of employers - BNP Paribas Personal Finance, Deloitte, Gateley, KPMG and Lloyds Bank -who have been working with BMet for nearly 10 years.

The alliance works to enrich the curriculum and to give BMet students the chance to develop their skills, so they are ready to progress into employment or further studies at a higher level.

GBPSA is the only FE Academy in the UK that is specifically designed to support recruitment into the business professional services sector.

Working with the GBPSA on both strategic and operational boards, has enabled the business-focused learners to be involved in a range of activities which ensure that BMet students get the best chances to work with real employers and enhance their career prospects.

Oliver Stokes, director for business, creative and law at BMet said: “It is essential that we have student representation on both the strategic and operational boards. The purpose of the GBPSA is to support the college with a number of factors, such as delivering themed workshops to support skill development with the intention of bridging the gap between our talented students and employers.

Among other things, the student board members provide employer panels with feedback on sessions, offer input on how the curriculum should look to engage students effectively and act as a voice to develop and grow the GBPSA.

Most recently, the students have helped design a mentoring programme, that will allow BMet students to engage in 1-2-1 mentoring and gain work experience with the GBPSA partners - in a range of functional areas including finance, marketing, human resource and many more.

The students have had a rewarding experience so far and feel empowered to connect with key local, national, and international employers, who can play a vital role in helping students to achieve their career goals.

Speaking of their roles and associated opportunities so far, Amaan said: “I am so pleased that my tutors at BMet helped me not only engage with my business course, but also encouraged me to become part of the GBPSA.

“Being on the board is bringing so many rewarding and positive outcomes for me. I am getting a chance to network with people who may be my and BMet students ' future employers, which otherwise probably wouldn 't have happened.

“I feel that all these opportunities will enable me to pursue and reach my dream of working within fashion marketing, after I later do a degree. ”

Find out more about the GBPSA on BMet 's website