University training day - December 2024
Inspiring, interactive training for student recruitment and outreach professionals. Christmas special: Engage the disengaged, design perfect slides, and boost wellbeing on the road!
Inspiring, interactive training for student recruitment and outreach professionals. Christmas special: Engage the disengaged, design perfect slides, and boost wellbeing on the road!
Tuesday 17, December 2024
Arrival refreshments from 9:30am
STEAMhouse
Belmont Row
Birmingham
B4 7RQ
We are pleased to share details of our next in-person training day with you.
These popular events are created specifically for university staff who deliver talks, activities, and events for schools and colleges. This includes staff working in student recruitment, widening participation, school liaison, and outreach roles.
You will hear from leading experts from inside and outside the sector on a diverse range of topics, all designed to help you perform in your role and inspire prospective students to see all the opportunities higher education offers.
Early bird offer – receive a £50 discount on places booked before Tuesday October 22nd.
Join us this December for an event designed to help you engage students through creative activities. You'll explore how to create energising sessions to inspire young people, how to use metaphors to enhance session engagement, strategies for protecting your wellbeing during busy periods, and tips for designing the perfect slide deck for your next workshop. This content is especially relevant for those working closely with prospective students, schools, and colleges.
With only 50 spots available, networking is a key focus. The event will feature regular breaks, a festive theme along with optional optional post-event networking drinks included too!
Overall event feedback rating – 4.8 out of 5
*This excludes the September 2024 training day – as the survey is still open.
Please watch this video from our June 2024 training day at the same location, for a taster of what to expect:
Kamal Ellis-Hyman is the founder of Aim A Little Higher, a company delivering engaging, high impact speeches and programmes across the country. To date, Kamal has delivered to over 100,000 students across the UK and has built a solid reputation for his company's impactful, interactive, humorous & high energy sessions.
Kamal's session will kickstart the day with an exploration of his approach to creative communication & creating engaging sessions for young people.
Katherine is a UK-based Career Development Professional, Mentor, and Educator. In 2019, she founded What's your strength?®, which started as a card activity to empower teenagers and has since evolved into a series of award-winning resources for all ages that are used in 16 countries.
Katherine’s innovative work has been recognised by the Department of Education, and she has been shortlisted for CDI Careers Adviser of the Year and two business start-up awards. Her resources are recommended by National Careers Week, the CDI, and The Careers and Enterprise Company.
Katherine also offers 1:1 career guidance for young people and delivers collaborative creative workshops to a variety of audiences. She is the co-architect of the #SoMuchMoreThanTalkingAboutJobs campaign and a passionate advocate for the career development sector.
Leah is a multi-award-winning medical student at the University of Sheffield. She is the Chief Operating Officer at Future Frontline, a not-for-profit organisation working to inspire and educate young people on the multidisciplinary team within the NHS.
Leah is particularly interested in general practice, psychiatry, and widening participation into healthcare degrees. She was the first in her family to study at university.
Leah uses her social media platform @wellnessmedic to discuss her lived mental health experience, and her journey as a widening participation medical student. She has spoken at multiple events and platforms on these topics, including several UCAS collaborations.
In 2024, Leah was awarded the Rising Star in Healthcare Award.
Liane has over 30 years of experience in the career development field as a coach, trainer, university lecturer and author. She is co-author of Creative Career Coaching (Routledge 2019), a best-selling book for career practitioners, and works with organisations worldwide to strengthen the confidence and skills of their practitioners. She is passionate about the potential impact of career conversations that use creative and whole-brain approaches. Whilst delivering keynotes and workshops worldwide, she continues to run her own career coaching and supervision practice.
Simon has almost 20 years of experience in the higher education sector. This includes student recruitment, marketing, and events roles at four different universities in the UK: Nottingham, Birmingham, Warwick, and Coventry.
Simon has also worked at Pickle Jar Communications, a content strategy consultancy for the international education sector. He helped schools, colleges, and universities share their stories through digital communications.
Simon is an international speaker. He has spoken at a variety of conferences, including CASE, ContentEd, EFMD, IDPE, FindAUniversity, HELOA, HighEdWeb, PSEWeb, SU Digital, SU Marketing Conference, and Utterly Content. He was Chair of the Newcomers Track at CASE Europe Annual Conference from 2020 to 2023.
As a published author, Simon is particularly interested in storytelling in the education sector. He spends his free time reading, writing, running, and finding new ways to make his children laugh.
Young people have busy lives. They have lots going on, both within and beyond school. Understandably, they might enter the classroom feeling tired, overwhelmed, distracted. How do we get their attention? How do we pique their energy levels and interest when we only have an hour of their time?
In our opening talk, Kamal Ellis-Hyman will offer you actionable advice for engaging the disengaged. Kamal will draw upon his experience in delivering high-impact, high-energy talks across the country. In doing so, you will have the tools to create your own interactive, humorous, and creative sessions for young people.
Presentations slides are essential in our roles as outreach professionals. We deliver them on and off campus, online and offline, to a wide range of prospective students and their supporters. These vital visual prompts offer insights about everything from personal statements to our life-changing communities.
But do we give our slide decks the attention they deserve? Are they clear or cluttered? Outstanding or outdated? Stylish and structured, or tiresome and tangled?
This interactive training session will supercharge your slide decks. You will discover how to craft memorable, accessible presentation slides, with a blend of flair and care that will truly engage your audiences in a classroom or campus environment.
Outreach professionals are in high demand. We are invited to speak to prospective students at a wide range of events: school talks, careers evenings, open days, UCAS exhibitions, UK University Search Fairs. Sometimes, we must juggle all of these commitments in a single week in different parts of the country.
It’s a lot. It’s no wonder we are vulnerable to illness, fatigue, and burnout. And yet we must keep bringing out our best selves to engage, inspire, and inform future students and their supporters. So, how can we protect our wellbeing on the road? How can we remain upbeat, uplifted, and upstanding through our peak periods?
Take a breath. Leah Brooks is here to help. Leah will offer you valuable wellbeing advice based on the four pillars of health: mind, body, diet, and sleep. She will draw upon her experience as a final year medical student, COO at Future Frontline, and social media wellness influencer. In doing so, she will help you stay healthy in Mad March, Just-As-Bad June, and every other time you have an overwhelming delivery schedule.
In an age of information deluge, young people risk cognitive overload – their mental circuits threatening to trip, leaving learning in the dark. How can you ensure your session doesn't just flick the switch, but illuminates understanding that shines bright months later?
Metaphors are more than just linguistic flourishes; they're mental velcro that makes learning stick. By transforming abstract concepts into vivid, relatable images, metaphors turn forgettable facts into unforgettable understanding.
In this hands-on workshop, we'll explore:
"Genuinely the best training sessions I've been to, and will continue to attend. I was skeptical on the high praise these sessions had received, but both times I've come away feeling more motivated and inspired about my own work, with some new tools and techniques to bring into existing projects."
"The day was fantastic from start to finish with a range of brilliant speakers who engaged throughout. The informal nature of these events means you feel able to provide your opinion and ask questions. I would highly recommend and I believe these training days are at the forefront of the sector."
"The event was perfectly set up to enable professional networking, in a natural, unobtrusive way"
"Exceptionally well-organised, the event featured outstanding speakers who provided valuable insights and practical tips."
"Such a useful day for anyone working in student recruitment or outreach work. The day was really energising and packed with lots of takeaway tips and advice"
"What a great day! The speakers were so applicable and informative. I loved getting the opportunity to meet other professionals in the same role as me and discuss best practice. Very fun, social and definitely worthwhile! I would love to attend again."
"I have never left a training day so inspired and excited to use what I have learnt in my job. Each speaker was knowledgeable, interesting with practical activities that we could take away to better how we work. I would attend another UniTasterDays training in a heartbeat!"
"I felt motivated to start making changes as soon as I was back at my laptop!"
"Fantastic day with engaging sessions, I learned plenty of new skills to take back to my role"
"Wonderfully engaging speakers and I went away with a full notebook of knowledge and tips for engaging young people!"
"An inspiring day, I look forward to sharing all the great tips with my team. Thank you for a brilliantly organised day."
Our programme is designed to meet the specific needs of university practitioners working in student recruitment, outreach, and widening participation event delivery roles. Expect audience-focused sessions to help you address the challenges you may encounter in your role.
Our event allows multiple opportunities for networking. This includes morning and afternoon refreshments, lunch, and a complimentary drinks reception after the event. You will leave with a wide range of new connections across the sector.
Our training days are designed as in-person events, so the sessions won’t be recorded. It is a unique opportunity for you to gain insights from experienced and expert speakers, whilst learning alongside your peers in a delightful location.
The training day will help you build your knowledge and network within the higher education sector. You will participate in a range of inspiring, insightful, and interactive sessions from expert speakers, from both within and beyond universities.
You will also find generous networking opportunities, including morning and afternoon refreshments, lunch, and a complimentary drinks reception after the event. A detailed schedule will be provided closer to the event for those who have booked a place.
The event is designed for new and experienced practitioners working in student recruitment, school liaison, outreach, and widening participation roles. If you are a university staff member and your responsibilities involve delivering activities for schools and colleges, this event is tailored specifically for you.
The event will be held on Tuesday 17 December 2024. Arrival refreshments will be provided from 9.30am with sessions beginning at 9.45am. Sessions will finish at 4.15pm.
Additionally, there will be an optional drinks reception from 4.15pm to 5.15pm. You are invited to join us for complimentary alcoholic or non-alcoholic drinks, and a final networking opportunity before travelling home.
The early bird ticket rate is £275+ VAT for an individual ticket, with discounts available for booking multiple places. Please see the booking form for group prices.
The event is situated in the stunning STEAMhouse building, located in central Birmingham, 10-15 minutes from Moor Street Train Station (closest) and Birmingham New Street Station - and with reasonably priced car parking near by and bicycle storage.
The STEAMhouse building was built in 1899 as the headquarters for the Eccles Rubber and Cycle Company. It was later repurposed to produce linen clothing, bedsteads, and pianos. It is now used by Birmingham City University and regional businesses, following extensive redevelopment.
If you have any questions, we’d be happy to help! Email our Support Team or call 01746 769269.
