The third and final phase of GlobeScotters has launched! For the rest of 2018, our campaign with Young Scot will shine a light on the career benefits of international experience.
The GlobeScotters campaign is bringing an international focus to Scotland’s Year of Young People by encouraging a global outlook and increasing inter-cultural understanding among young people. Having launched in June this year, the first phase looked at the many soft skills that can be gained through international experience, while the second centred on international education opportunities and the importance of language learning.
New content will focus on the importance of global skills for young people’s future careers. Through articles, interviews, videos and competitions, GlobeScotters will cover reasons to work abroad, how language skills can benefit your career, and ways in which international experience can help you get a job.
There is also a new survey on the site which aims to gather young people’s opinions on language learning and international job markets. Those who complete the survey will gain 50 Young Scot Rewards points which they can use to claim prizes and enter competitions.
Content will be shared throughout the career phase, including articles by previous IAESTE interns, interviews with students who gained employment through their Erasmus+ placements, and tips from previous language assistants on how to ace an application to the programme.
Content on the site is informed by British Council research which tells us that young people in Scotland are keen to work internationally. Findings from the 2014 Scotland’s Future Workforce report show that, of the young people asked, 70% would like to work in an overseas market during their career.
However, young people also cited finance, fear of the unknown and language skills as barriers. Furthermore, three quarters of businesses consulted for the report said Scotland is behind on the skills that are necessary to compete in global markets. Over 70% of businesses think Scotland is in danger of being left behind by emerging economies, while nearly 70% said the country is behind the rest of the EU.
According to CFE Research and the London School of Economics, international experience gained through taking part in mobility programmes such as Erasmus+ not only leads to a more global outlook in participants but allows them to improve on key skills desired by employers, including leadership, team working, language abilities and critical thinking.
Both British Council Scotland and Young Scot believe the skills gained from international experience are more important than ever in our increasingly interconnected world. With GlobeScotters, we aim to make international experience more realistic and accessible for young people in Scotland.
The careers phase of GlobeScotters will run until the end of 2018. Until then, encourage the young people in your life to visit the site, enter the competitions, and consider how international experience might benefit them in the future. To stay up to date with new content, follow Young Scot on Twitter and join in the conversation using #GlobeScotters.
If you are interested in learning more about the international educational opportunities provided by British Council, visit our Study Work Abroad page now.