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5 great places to learn about industries you could work in
If you’re in the first stages of your career journey, you’ve probably heard careers advisors and teachers use the term ‘industries’, or maybe ‘sectors’. These words are often used interchangeably, and usually they just mean ‘areas of work’.
When you start thinking about your future career plans, it can help to have a good understanding of what all of these industries actually are, and the jobs found in them. Often, the same or similar qualifications are needed to get into different roles in the same area of work, so knowing which industries you’re drawn to can help inform your GCSE and post-16 choices – even if you don’t know exactly what you want to do when you leave school or college.
We’ve put together a list of our five favourite places for learning about different industries and the roles within them.
1. Success at School
Our 34 Career Zones are a great place to learn about an industry in depth. Each one contains an overview of the industry itself, as well as a list of job roles in the industry, routes into the industry (e.g. apprenticeships or university) and entry requirements needed to get there, as well as guidance on how to decide whether the industry is right for you.
Best feature: Our Career Zones are comprehensive – covering 34 industries – which means you can get an insight into pretty much every area of work out there.
2. London School of Economics
Like many other university websites, London School of Economics (LSE) has a great careers hub – with an in-depth section on employment sectors or industries you could work in. The section lists 25 industries, from accountancy to technology, with each page containing detailed information on why you might want to consider a career in this area. Other useful features include expandable tabs on the kinds of employers in the industry and what jobs are out there, as well as the qualifications and requirements needed to enter a career in this area.
Best feature: Each page features a nifty ‘events’ tab which shares information about things like careers fairs and industry days.
3. UCAS
UCAS has 16 bright and colourful pages on different industries, each one featuring video interviews and case studies, stats and quotes. Each page contains a section on apprenticeships in the area and features prominent links to opportunities in context. The information is a bit lighter than other sources, including Success at School, but it paints a clear picture of what each industry is like.
Best feature: The videos, which really bring each industry to life, helping you picture what it might be like to work in each area.
4. Best Apprenticeships
Unsurprisingly, Best Apprenticeships’ industry guides are focused on apprenticeships, with expandable sections on the different kinds of apprenticeships in each area. A nifty feature of each page is a section on programmes available at each apprenticeship level, linking to live opportunities. So this is a useful resource if finding apprenticeships is your thing – however, the content is a little light, so if you’re hoping to learn about the sector, try another resource first.
Best feature: Apprenticeship levels section, which lists live vacancies for the industry available group by level, from 2 (intermediate) up to 6 and 7 (degree).
5. BBC Bitesize
Are you wondering what an industry actually is? Here’s an idea – check out BBC Bitesize’s geography page, which defines what an industry is in the field of economics. It explains the different kinds of industry and how they come together to take goods and services all the way through from production and distribution to sale and consumption.
Best feature: Offers a simple and visual introduction to the concept of industry to help you understand what this whole conversation is about.
Once you’ve got a handle on the industries you’re drawn to, it’s time to learn more about the jobs in those areas of work – with over 600 roles listed, our searchable Jobs A-Z is the perfect place to start.
