Case studies: Post compulsory manager: Pamela

Pamela studied for a degree in public and social policy at Glyndwr University, Wrexham on a part-time basis and graduated in 2009. She is employed by the Welsh Assembly in the Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills Department. Pamela progressed to her current position while completing her studies.

I decided to enrol on the social and public policy degree to develop my career further. I had worked within the public sector in various organisations for a number of years and felt I needed a formal qualification to open up more opportunities to progress further. 

I always wanted a role that involved helping or supporting. The role I do now involves working on initiatives and policies to further develop practitioners within the further education sector. I work remotely from my home for most of the working week but do travel to Cardiff regularly for various meetings. On occasion I will attend meetings at other locations across Wales.

My social and public policy degree has been valuable in a number of respects. Undertaking relevant study at higher education level made me feel more confident about what I was capable of doing. I also gained further knowledge of the workings and structure of the public sector and an understanding of government at all levels. This helped me to appreciate the context I was working in.

The degree helped me develop a number of skills that are important in my current role. The course definitely helped my written communication skills as I had to write a number of reports. The ability to write clear policy is a vital part of my current role. In addition, being required to carry out my own research has helped me to appreciate and utilise all relevant information to produce the most effective policies I can.  

In my view, one of the best parts of working for the Welsh Assembly relates to the breadth of opportunity. There are many departments and if you prove you are capable you can experience many areas of work. This ensures there are new challenges throughout your career. In addition continuing professional development (CPD) is high on the agenda where I work, which means that you can develop your career in a formally recognised way to back up the practical experiences. 
 
The more challenging parts of the role relate to the decision-making processes being relatively slow and budgets being limited. Decisions are not always made quickly, partly because the processes have to be open to public scrutiny. As a result, you can be waiting on other people to progress an initiative. Also, I would say that at times you feel financial budgets can prevent you doing everything you want to achieve.

My advice to students thinking about a career within the Welsh Assembly is to do your research. Job vacancies are advertised on the website and there is also a considerable amount of information to help you understand what we do. Talking to people doing the job or a similar one will really help. I would also say that you should not be put off by the application process. It can seem quite daunting but being confident in your abilities and what you are capable of will make a difference.  

AGCAS

Sourced by Neil Pritchard, Glyndwr University

Date: 

October 2009

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