Digital, creative and IT careers were the main focus at West Nottinghamshire College as the computer science curriculum embraced CybXpo.

The two-day cyber exhibition showcased the diversity of job roles within the sector via a range of special guest speakers, which encompassed IT employees from the health service, private industry, AI, retail, and design.

Dawid Ostrowski, founder of OOM AI, introduced his business to students, which was developed to support both individuals and businesses in reaching their own versions of efficiency, productivity and balance through tailored AI solutions.

Dawid explained the company’s profile and background, which specialises in consultation, the implementation and automation of AI and a range of training courses that are delivered online and in person.

One of the college’s network technicians, Stuart Harper (above), shared the story of his journey at the college from student to technician. Stuart detailed some of the large-scale projects he’s been involved in including work on the college’s servers.

Former head of the college’s IT services, Richard Brook (above), provided students with his career history which saw him start out as an electrician before moving to become head of the college’s IT services. He now works part-time at the University of Huddersfield as well as being involved in voluntary work for the Woodland Trust.

Richard got students to work in groups to discuss their personal strengths and attributes which could be applied to future job roles. He provided a range of advice and tips for success within IT and technical carers.

Employees from Mansfield’s Linney group attended to share their study and career journeys with students. Will Burton, Beth Harrogate and Will Barton (above), all former students at the college. The trio, who all work within the company’s IT team, spoke about their individual routes into the business as well as their day-to-day work developing applications, project planning and IT solutions.

Francine Rowley, talent and skills adviser at Mansfield District Council joined learners to share information about the local labour market, apprenticeships, future skills needed in a workplace and how they shortlist applications for interviews, which was especially useful as some students have already made applications to go on to a digital apprenticeship at the council.

Claire Garner, digital training and development manager at Nottinghamshire Health Informatics Service, spoke about the breadth of work placements in various areas of health service which students can take advantage of.

Claire helped students to think about their interview techniques and how to present themselves in an interview situation.  She also introduced the learners to Daniel Sales, a former level 3 student who has flourished whilst doing his apprenticeship at King’s Mill Hospital.

On day two of the expo, students welcomed Nina Maric of Fraser Group. Nina profiled her role as recruitment partner at the Shirebrook headquarters while discussing how starting in helpdesk positions in IT can lead on to a whole breadth of career options from tech support to search engine optimisation (SEO).

Leigh Warsop and Agnes McFarlane from Currys’ main distribution centre in Newark, discussed their roles and the opportunities at the company, which employs over 35,000 people in more than 800 stores across seven countries.

They covered what is involved in a typical day in the supply chain and service operations part of the distribution centre and the kind of job roles that are available to work in as well as the range of apprenticeships on offer.

Programmes available to study on at the national repair centre are the LGV driving apprenticeship, white goods engineer apprenticeship, gas engineer apprenticeship and the Level 3 repair technician apprenticeship.

Councillor Matt Relf, the executive lead member for growth, regeneration and local planning at Ashfield District Council introduced students to the concept of software development and technical debt. He spoke in depth to the T Level students about starting a career in software and the doors that can open locally.

Another former student, Brandon Louth, joined students online to outline his experience in industry since leaving the college. Brandon, who completed his Level 3 qualifications in coding and logic, cloud services and business processes in 2021, now works as a QA engineer at Kappture IT.

For students seeking apprenticeships or jobs, he recommended contacting the internal apprenticeship team for guidance or starting in a first-line support role, which provides valuable experience. His advice to students was to gain hands-on experience early, whether through apprenticeships, direct work, or graduate schemes, as each path offers valuable opportunities.

T Level Technical Qualification in Digital Production, Design and Development student Monika Batterbee said: “I found the CybXpo very helpful and interesting. It’s opened up opportunities to so many great employers which will hopefully provide me with benefits in the future.

“I’ve also gained some great advice in relation to the computing industry which I can keep with me for the rest of my career.”

Computer science’s vocational learner development coach Paula Hyde said:  “I organise the CybXpo each year as I realise how important it is to prepare our students to be work-ready in such a competitive field.

“We managed to get some wonderful speakers who gave invaluable advice and set some interesting projects. Hopefully some future careers will come out of these opportunities and students feel empowered to create a successful future in IT.”