Career Advice from Former Pupil

Year 10 girls at Bolton School Girls’ Division spent an instructive Form period, learning from former pupil Ziyaah Shaikh, who ‘remoted’ in from North-West London. 

Ziyaah, who has only been back in the UK for a year, recapped her life, recalling how her mind was first opened up to various career possibilities at Bolton School. She told how she went on to study Computer Science: Software Engineering at the University of Manchester for four years from 2008-12 and how she also studied for a PGCE at the University of Derby, whilst still working.

Her first job, Ziyaah said, was with HSBC for a year and a half, working in St Ann’s Square in central Manchester. She had decided that IT was not for her and had taken a role in compliance. Ziyaah told how she learnt a lot of useful professional skills at HSBC and how she has, over the years, learnt that she likes being part of a team and training people – particularly in customer services and soft skills. She recalled how she got married in 2014 and moved to Dubai with her husband, where she took up a role in HR with Talent2. In 2017, she had a child and stopped working before the family moved to Abu Dhabi, where she went on to take up a position training teachers in a government school within the Ministry of Education. She explained how it had been a fun and challenging job as she had to deal with people from lots of different backgrounds and cultures. After three years in this position, Ziyaah recounted how she moved to London with her husband and daughter and secured a job working for Global Study UK. Her current role there, she said, is as a Training Manager. The company brings in students from the Middle-East and places them in UK universities.

Ziyaah answered a good range of questions, including: did you enjoy studying computing; how did you adapt to the new environment in Dubai; would you recommend living abroad; what other A levels did you study; what are your top tips for Year 10 pupils on choosing their A levels; how did you get your first job with HSBC; and what extra-curricular activities did you take whilst at school?

You can watch Ziyaah’s presentation on Bolton School TV.