Explore & Discover

Role Description

You could work in the public sector for a local authority, housing association or government department. 

You could also work in the private sector for a building contractor, property company, civil engineering or architecture firm.

Your day-to-day tasks may include:

• finding out a client’s needs and assessing if their plans are feasible
• working out quantities and costs of materials, time and labour for tenders
• negotiating contracts and work schedules
• advising on legal matters, including risks and disputes 
• monitoring sub-contractors and stages of construction 
• writing regular reports on costs and preparing accounts for payment
• keeping up to date with construction methods and materials 
• following health and safety and building regulations

Role Training

You'll need a degree or professional qualification accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). This can be a quantity surveying degree or a postgraduate conversion course from any degree. Useful subjects are construction, structural or civil engineering, mathematics, geography, economics or land studies.

You could also start work as a junior or trainee quantity surveyor, a surveying technician or surveying assistant, then study to become a quantity surveyor.

You could also get into this job with an apprenticeship.

You’ll need to be a member of RICS (MRICS) to become a fully qualified chartered surveyor. For this you’ll need to complete the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC).

Role Description

1. Entry requirements

There are no set requirements but competition is strong so you’ll usually need a foundation degree or a degree.

If you want to go into quantitative work (analysis based on numbers), these degrees may be useful:

• maths
• statistics
• business/management
• economics
• For qualitative work (analysis based on language), useful degrees include:
• psychology
• sociology
• geography
• social sciences
• anthropology

English or marketing degrees are also useful, as well as sciences or engineering for some specialist industrial jobs. 

You’ll also find it useful to have previous experience in marketing, sales or advertising, or as a market research interviewer. 

You could get a paid internship or join a graduate training scheme. You could also start as a research assistant in an agency and then take further qualifications.

The Market Research Society (MRS) has more information about careers in market research.

2. Skills required

You’ll need:

excellent number and IT skills

the ability to analyse and interpret statistics

written communication skills for report writing and designing questionnaires

creative problem-solving skills

accuracy and attention to detail

organisational and time-management skills

initiative and teamwork skills

3. What you'll do

As a market research executive, you’ll specialise in one type of research – consumer or industrial, social or political. You’ll carry out research using one of 2 main methods:

quantitative – analysis based on numbers, from surveys of large samples of people

qualitative – analysis based on language, from focus groups and in-depth questionnaires

Depending on the type of research, in your work you’ll usually:

meet clients to discuss research projects

come up with a plan or proposal and present it to the client

manage a budget

design questionnaires and organise surveys

brief interviewers and researchers

monitor progress of surveys

analyse data and present results to the client

advise the client how they can best use the research

Most jobs involve a lot of computer work, for background research and to analyse information and produce reports.

4. Salary

Starter: £20,000 to £25,000

Experienced: £25,000 to £35,000

Highly Experienced: £60,000 (senior market research executive)

These figures are a guide.

5. Working hours, patterns and environment

If you work as a quantitative researcher in-house for a company, you’ll usually work in an office with standard hours, Monday to Friday, with occasional overtime to meet project deadlines.

If you work as a qualitative researcher, you’ll often work evenings and weekends to travel to visit clients and focus groups. You may need a driving licence and a car.

6. Career path and progression

With experience, you could progress into management, or become a self-employed market research consultant. 

You could also move into the promotional side of advertising or marketing.

Role Description

You'll be helping people in their own homes or in day centres, residential or nursing homes.

Your day-to-day duties may include:

• getting to know clients and their interests and needs
• helping with personal care like washing, using the toilet and dressing
• food preparation, feeding and giving out medication
• carrying out general tasks like housework, laundry and shopping
• helping clients manage their budget, pay bills and write letters
• supporting families to get used to new caring responsibilities
• giving emotional and practical support to children and young people
• working with other health and social care professionals to provide individual care and development plans
• helping to organise leisure activities
• going with clients to and from a residential home

Role Training

There are no set requirements, but you'll find it useful to have some experience in a caring role. This could be personal experience of caring for someone you know, or voluntary work with an organisation that supports vulnerable people.

You'll be working with children or vulnerable adults, so you'll need Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) clearance.

You could get into this job through an apprenticeship.

If you're new to adult social care in England, you'll need to gain the Care Certificate as part of a 12-week induction programme provided by your employer.

Find out more at Skills for Care.

Within 6 months of starting in children's residential care, you'll need to have or get the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare or equivalent.

Find out more about the Children's homes regulations.

Role Description

Skills required

You'll need:

• financial skills
• excellent negotiating and networking skills
• leadership and management skills

What you'll do

Your day-to-day tasks may include:

• deciding what goods, services and equipment are needed
• monitoring and forecasting stock levels
• researching and finding new products and suppliers
• assessing tenders from potential suppliers
• negotiating prices and agreeing contracts
• keeping up to date with market trends

In larger organisations you may run a purchasing department and lead a team of buyers and administrators. In smaller companies, you may combine purchasing with other management duties.

Role Training

There are no set requirements, but experience in a company's purchasing department could help. 

You may also be able to get into this role through a company's management training scheme.

Role Description

1. Entry requirements

There are no set requirements, but it may help if you have some GCSEs or equivalent including English and maths.

Experience of dealing with the public and giving presentations could be useful, and additional languages may also help.

You may need a Blue Badge in Tourist Guiding to work in places like Westminster Abbey and York Minster.

2. Skills required

You'll need:

• excellent communication skills
• the ability to present information in an interesting way
• a good memory for facts, figures and events
• organisational skills for planning tours

3. What you'll do

You'll work in one place or accompany groups on driving or walking tours.

You'll escort groups around sites, giving information about history, purpose, architecture or other points of interest.

Role Training

You will more than likely recieve on the job training to ensure each tour includes importnat facts and features.

Role Description

Agronomists have a wide range of work, but their role is best summed up as a “crop doctor.” They are concerned with the health and well-being of crops used for food production, fuel, and land reclamation. Agronomists conduct experiments to develop the best methods for increasing the quality and production of crops. Based on their experiments, agronomists work with farmers to help them grow the best possible crops, such as corn, cotton, soybeans, and wheat. They have an extensive knowledge of chemistry, biology, economics, earth science, ecology, and genetics. 

An agronomist spends time in the lab going over crop data that has been collected to find out how to improve the next generation. They have to think critically and solve problems concerning the planting, harvesting, and cultivation of crops. They also develop methods for protecting the crops from weeds, pests, and harsh climates. After they have written up their research, an agronomist will make presentations and speeches about their findings and present their ideas to farmers who can use the information for their own harvests. An agronomist also spends a lot of time traveling and meeting with farmers, working with them to improve crop efficiency and looking at any problems the farmer may be experiencing. 

There are a variety of roles an agronomist can specialize in: 

Research
Research in agronomy includes crop productivity, genetic engineering, and conservation practises. Research agronomists often work in labs but also perform large amounts of field work. Almost all research agronomists have a master’s or doctorate degree in agronomy or a related field. 

Crop Production and Management
These types of agronomists most often work with field crops. They manage crop planting and harvesting, and implement more efficient farming practises. This role may also include the management of recreational areas, like golf courses and sports fields. This job usually involves a lot of time working outdoors. 

Sustainable Development
Agronomists in this field work with all kinds of agricultural projects, ranging from large high-tech farms to smaller individual farms in developing nations. Whatever the size, this kind of agronomist is concerned with helping farmers develop and implement practises that ensure operations remain economically and environmentally viable for the future. 

Soil and Water Conservation
Agronomists involved in this field are often scientists and engineers. They might implement practises to improve water quality, manage runoff, and control erosion. Depending on the job, conservation agronomists may spend time outdoors, in an office, or both.

Role Training

Having experience and a good knowledge of the farming processes and crops is a great starting path to become an agronomist, however an agricultural qualification can also be gained.

The courses that provide an agricultural qualification are as follows:

Edexcel BTEC Level 3 Diplomas or extended Diplomas in Agricultural Business Management (QCF)

City and Guilds Level 4 Diplomas or extended Diplomas in Agricultural Business Management 

Foundation Degree in Agricultural Business Management or Animal Studies

BSc (Hons) Degree in Agriculture or similar subjects

Role Description

1. Entry requirements

You'll need to be over 18 and hold a full car driving licence.

You can apply for a job as a trainee with a freight company or complete an LGV course with a private training provider. You'll also need a Certificate of Professional Competence (Driver CPC).

You could get into this job through an apprenticeship.

2. Skills required

You'll need:

excellent driving skills and road safety knowledge

the ability to work alone and concentrate for long periods

a polite manner with customers

the ability to complete record sheets and paperwork accurately

3. What you'll do

You'll drive commercial vehicles over 7.5 tonnes, including articulated lorries, tankers, transporters and trailer wagons. You'll work from depots, distribution centres and warehouses, carrying goods all over the UK and overseas.

Apart from driving, your duties may include:

planning delivery schedules and routes with transport managers

supervising or helping to load and unload goods

making sure loads are safely secured

following traffic reports and changing your route if necessary

completing delivery paperwork and log books

You may also deal with basic maintenance, like oil, tyre and brake checks before and after journeys.

4. Salary

Starter: £18,500 to £22,000

Experienced: £23,000 to £28,000

Highly Experienced: £27,000 to £35,000

Overtime may be available.

These figures are a guide.

5. Working hours, patterns and environment

You'll usually work up to 42 hours a week. Overtime may be available but there are strict laws about the amount of hours you can spend driving between rest breaks.

Most of your time would be spent on the road, and you would drive day and night in all weather conditions.

Overnight stays may be necessary.

6. Career path and progression

You could take further training and gain an ADR (Advisory Dangerous Goods by Road) Certificate to drive hazardous goods like toxic chemicals by tanker.

With experience, you could train to become an LGV instructor, freight transport planner or move into management.

Role Description

Your day-to-day tasks may include:

• unloading scaffolding from a lorry
• creating a stable base on the ground
• putting up scaffolding poles and attaching horizontal tubes to them
• fixing scaffolding to a building
• laying planks across scaffolding for workers to walk on
• fixing guard rails and safety nets
• taking down scaffolding after a job

Role Training

There are no set entry requirements, but you'll need a Construction Industry Scaffolders Record Scheme (CISRS) card.

GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) in English, maths, and design and technology may be helpful.

Experience on a construction site would also be useful.

You could start as a trainee scaffolder or get into this job through an apprenticeship.

You may need a driving licence.