At the end of Term 2, our Grade 7 to Grade 11 pupils went on an exciting, two-day job-shadow programme. The job-shadow programme aims to provide our pupils with real-world exposure and practical experience in various professional fields. We believe that participating in this programme will offer numerous benefits to our pupils, both in our junior high school grades and among our seniors.
For our junior high school grades, this job-shadow programme offers a unique chance for early career exploration. By engaging in hands-on experiences and observing professionals in different fields, our younger pupils can gain valuable insights into various areas of interest and possibly career paths. This exposure can help them make more informed decisions about their future subject choices and further study options, allowing them to start planning and setting goals early on.
For our senior pupils, this programme serves as an invaluable opportunity to gain practical experience in their areas of interest. It allows them to apply the knowledge and skills they have acquired throughout their academic journey in a real-world setting. Additionally, seniors can use this experience to network with professionals in their chosen fields, potentially opening doors to internships, mentorships, or future employment opportunities.
Here are some of their stories.
My job-shadowing experience was very enjoyable, informative, and riveting. I had the honor of job-shadowing Professor Victoria Gibbon, who works at UCT as a professor of biological and forensic anthropology, as well as a researcher.
On the first day, I got a tour of the Health and Science campus, including its museum, which was filled with skeletal remains and preserved body parts, such as a smoker’s lungs, foetuses, and conjoined twins etc. I learned how to estimate and differentiate between male and female skeletons based on the pelvis and skull. During the tour, I also met Professor Gibbon’s research group, which conducts projects that advance the field of anthropology. I visited a field site where her team uses pigs, which have a similar organ structure to humans, to simulate real-life scenarios mostly homicide-related.
On my final day, I learned about and saw the process of preserving cadavers, and I visited the mortuary. I had the opportunity to hold human organs, including a heart, brain, lungs, and large intestines, and other body parts.
I also saw the process of skeletonization and learned about the proper procedures for conducting an autopsy. It was a great experience, and I learned a lot about the anthropology department. I could definitely see myself pursuing a career in this field in the future.
Oratile Tlale Grade 8
This year, I had the opportunity to job-shadow a CityROCK routesetter (who also happens to be one of my climbing coaches). Routesetting is a job that goes by almost unnoticed in the climbing world, but plays a huge part in keeping gyms in order. They use their creativity to come up with exciting and challenging routes for customers to enjoy.
Before this experience, I never fully understood the process of route setting and how much detail you have to put into making the perfect climb. First, the main routesetter decides who is setting what routes and where, what the colour of the holds they’ll be using will be, and what the grade of each climb is. Each setter gets 2-3 routes to set for each wall, with one wall every few days. It took us a total of six hours to set the wall, with a one-hour break in between (3 hours’ setting, 1 hour break, 2 hours’ forerunning (testing the routes)). The sheer amount of time is because of how many micro-rearrangements of holds are made throughout the course of the routesetting.
Because I was only job-shadowing, I set one route by myself of an easy level (although, for amateurs, it would most likely be considered of moderate to high level). I will conclude that this was quite a memorable and enjoyable experience, and would love to be able to do it again!
Leah Kooyman Grade 8
Sarah and I went to job shadow a paediatrician that specialises in allergies. The first day we went to her clinic to see patients. We watched her perform the allergy prick test. The second day we went to the Red Cross Hospital and her clinic where we saw five patients, including the cutest baby ever. I enjoyed the overall experience of being a paediatrician.
Dannika Hendricks Grade 7
I shadowed a dermatologist where I observed facial treatments and patient consultations. I asked thoughtful questions and received informative answers, giving me valuable insight into the field of skincare and dermatology.
Sadie-Mia Ronné Grade 9
I job shadowed at a rehabilitation facility called Faircape Health. At this facility, they help people recover after surgery, and there are various therapists who work together to help patients get back to their normal selves and move around independently. This includes physiotherapists (whom I job shadowed), occupational therapists, and speech therapists.
I spent time with two women who were both physiotherapists — one specialised in elderly rehabilitation and another worked with neuro patients (people who have suffered an injury or change in the functioning of the brain like strokes or dementia). I observed how they treated each patient and the types of exercises they used to help them regain strength and mobility. I also learned that being a physiotherapist requires you to be physically strong, as you often have to help patients up from their beds or support them while walking or doing exercises.
What stood out to me the most was seeing how proud the patients were of their progress. The facility has such a positive and encouraging atmosphere, which I think is really important in helping to motivate and uplift the patients during their recovery.
Safiya Rooknodien Grade 9
I went to TOGI (Two Oceans Graduate Institute) for my job shadow. I spent the two days with the IT department and learned what they do on a day-to-day basis. I went to an expo on the second day which was interesting. I learnt about different coding languages and different uses of software, like building websites and making web pages and the systems involved for links to be able to work.
Aiden van Wyk Grade 11
I shadowed various teachers and art students at the Ruth Prowse School of Art. I learnt a lot about the process of jewelry making/casting as well as painting, marketing and graphic design. What was most fascinating to me is the way the teachers adapt the curriculum to each student and help every individual to succeed in their unique and fascinating art styles.
Alaya Kaplen Grade 10
I decided to job shadow a restaurant owner, and it was a fun and different experience! I counted glasses and logged invoices, and even got creative and painted a signboard. It was an eye-opening experience that showed me how busy it can be to run a restaurant and that it is so much more than just cooking meals and serving customers.
Khloe Potgieter Grade 9
For my work experience, I spent time shadowing at HHO Civil Engineering and got saw what different teams do. I really enjoyed learning about the Traffic Department and the geotechnical side of things. It was cool to discover the difference between engineers and architects and how they both help with building projects.
Mia Mossick Grade 7
I shadowed an interior designer called Colette Adendorff who owns a studio in Pinelands called Kin Studio. I learnt a lot from this experience and I am even more interested perhaps in becoming an interior designer.
Abigail Odendaal Grade 8
I enjoyed my Work Experience and I learnt a lot about bookkeeping. I also learnt how to figure out how much a storage facility costs due to how big the facility is. I had to take the cost of 1 square metre and multiply it by the size of the storage facility to get to the final cost. I cannot wait to learn more things from Job shadowing next year.
Emma Shepherd Grade 7
My Job Shadowing was a wonderful experience. It taught me how to interact with children. This experience gave me a good idea of the patience I need with tiny children and how each child and their needs are unique. I went to Giggle and Grow Playschool. On the first day I read the children stories, played outside with them and I even helped a little girl called Hope who had Foetal Alcohol Syndrome to cut, paste, and draw for her task for the day. All of the children climbed over me like I was a climbing wall. Two little girls who were best friends stayed with me on both days and did not let go.
On the second day, it was movie day. We went into the house and all the children watched “Winnie The Pooh” and “Fancy Nancy”, while eating popcorn and biscuits. When the movie had ended, the children did a Just Dance challenge on the teacher’s laptop. They were all dancing on the mat – so cute. After dancing, they got some hot chocolate with marshmallows. One of the little girls called Zara spilled her hot chocolate all over her table and the floor. I helped her clean it up and get her some more. I left at 12:00 and my parents came and collected me.
Believe it or not, the teacher that I was working with taught me in pre-playschool when I was really little. Her name is Yolande and the children call her Teacher Landi.
Julia Gay Grade 7
It was a worthwhile experience despite being quite boring, because learning what you don’t want to do is almost as valuable as learning what you want to do. I went to the UCT Astronomy Department. I’ve been interested in Astronomy for many years now and attended the department’s open day a month ago. This was the Astronomy Department’s first job shadow program, and they repeated many of the same activities as in the open day, such as some basic Python coding, a tour of the student telescopes on campus, analyzing 3D data in VR and classifying galaxy images. It was slightly disorganised, but more importantly for me, I learned that in order to be a professional astronomer you really have to be laser-focused on that one topic for many years of intensive study that I feel like would not suit me, as I have other interests and passions.
Ben le Roux Grade 10
During my internship at the grocery store, I organised products, checked inventory, and kept the store clean. I especially enjoyed tidying the shelves and seeing everything in order. The experience taught me to be more detail-oriented and responsible.
Chenxi Yan Grade 7
I job shadowed a physio. I enjoyed learning about the path they took to get to where they are today. It was similar to what I did last year, but it was interesting to see how they dealt with customers differently.
Liam Ingram Grade 10
My job shadow was very interesting. I went to the West Coast Fossil Park for my Work Experience and helped them find and extract small bones and bone fragments from a large pile of gravel. These bones came from frogs and small animals that lived there around 5 million years ago. I was then given a tour by some of the other students. We also dissected owl pellets (basically furballs that owls make) to learn how to classify different bones into their types and species.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time there and learnt a lot about the history of the Fossil Park as well as the different bones and what they look like.
Freddie le Roux Grade 8
This year for job shadowing, my friend Amara and I went together and we did graphic designing. We went to a company called PixelFaerie. I learnt a lot about how to make a good powerpoint presentation and I got to think in the perspective of a graphic designer. I had lots of fun and the person that we job shadowing was very friendly. The building had a lot of security since most of their work is very confidential. It is definitely an option for a potential career in my future.
Gabriella de Stefanis Grade 8