Oaklands College Students Explore Careers in Technology at Tesco Insight Day

Students from Oaklands College enjoyed an inspiring and hands-on experience at a recent Next Tech Girls Insight Day hosted at Tesco’s Head Office in Welwyn Garden City.

The event gave students the opportunity to explore real-world careers in technology, meet industry professionals and take part in interactive demonstrations across a range of tech roles.

Fifteen students attended the Insight Day, including eleven learners from the College’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) department. The visit offered a valuable opportunity to gain first-hand insight into the variety of careers available within the technology sector at one of the UK’s largest employers.

Next Tech Girls, an award-winning social enterprise founded by tech recruitment agency Empiric, works to tackle the gender and skills gaps within the UK technology industry. Through partnerships with leading organisations, the initiative provides teenage girls and young women with access to inspiring events, insight days and work experience opportunities.

During the day, students heard from women working across Tesco’s technology teams in product, engineering, design and programme management roles. Speakers shared their career journeys, discussed their day-to-day responsibilities and offered advice to students considering careers within digital and technology industries.

Students also took part in a campus tour, including a visit to Tesco Labs — the company’s hub of experimentation and innovation — as well as practical activities and demonstrations designed to give learners hands-on experience of real technology roles.

The event was a huge success, with Oaklands College student Zara commenting:

“It was a wonderful experience. We were greeted by lovely staff and heard speeches from women working there about how they made it and what their day-to-day looks like. They were open to any questions and made us feel comfortable. We saw demos, tried some of their jobs, and had time at the end to ask anything we wanted. It was an amazing day.”

The success of the Insight Day has already opened the door to future collaboration between Oaklands College, Next Tech Girls and Tesco. Plans are currently being explored for a future hack day, where students will work in teams to develop and pitch innovative technology ideas to Tesco.

Lynsey Elliott, ICT Tutor at Oaklands College, said:

“The students had an incredibly positive experience, gaining valuable insight into careers in technology and engaging directly with industry professionals. It was great to see such high levels of participation and enthusiasm throughout the day.”

The event forms part of Oaklands College’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality enrichment opportunities, employer engagement and progression pathways for students studying ICT and digital programmes.