Within the Elisabeth Selbert Comprehensive School’s wide range of career choice orientation, the following offerings in the MINT area should be highlighted.
- Year: Laboratory driving license
The laboratory driving license is carried out in collaboration with the German Museum Bonn. It combines scientific content with career orientation processes. Four workshops in the German Museum Bonn and three training locations outside the museum will be attended alternately.
In the museum, experimental phases alternate with exercises that record students’ thoughts and expectations regarding career orientation and encourage reflection.
These reflections on career orientation are deepened through eventful visits to training locations outside the museum, the “real chemical spaces”. The students gain authentic insights into the realities of trainees. Elements of the afternoon visits include company explorations, conversations with trainees, practical-experimental phases or explanations of the requirements for applicants. Faces of trainees, foremen or personnel selectors come to life just as much as everyday routines in the company.
The partners involved are GKN Sinter Metals, Bonn, the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Berg TV, LyondellBasell, the Wesseling plant, Dr. Reinold Hagen Foundation, the Friedrich-List vocational college, the Evangelical Senior Center Theresienau, the GVP non-profit workshops Bonn and the University of Bonn.
As part of these events, the students get to know the everyday worlds of chemical technicians, chemical laboratory assistants, druggists, pharmaceutical and commercial assistants, process mechanics for plastics and rubber technology, industrial mechanics, geriatric nurses, as well as agricultural and technical assistants, farmers and radio and video journalists.
- Year MINT career choice orientation in specialist lessons and compulsory elective lessons
In the 8th grade chemistry class there is a lesson on the topic of “Metals”. In this context, professions that are in the field of metal extraction or metal processing are presented.
In addition, there is a teaching unit on “MINT careers” in the 8th grade elective course in natural sciences. The students develop the presentation of a MINT career according to certain specifications and first present these careers in class. If desired, it is also possible to present this presentation to all 8th grade classes so that the information about these MINT careers is available to all students in the year. According to the curriculum, this teaching unit takes place in the fall of the school year, so that the students are encouraged to use their trial internship at the end of the 8th year to get to know a MINT career field.
8th/9th year: company tours
To ensure that our school’s students are introduced to MINT careers at an early age, company visits in the areas of water management and resource utilization take place in the 8th grade as part of the specialist lessons. In addition, company visits take place in the first half of the 9th year, which a large number of students complete in scientific and technical companies and are intended to encourage them to do their internship in a MINT company.
8th / 9th year: zdi workshops in the German Museum
So that the students get a good insight into the career opportunities in different MINT professions, the school’s specialist teachers use the opportunity to take part in zdi workshops with career orientation in the German Museum with their classes/courses. In such a workshop, the students spend 5 hours in the museum. There is an exciting experimental part that is embedded in the subject matter of the lesson, combined with a career orientation component. You will learn about professions such as food technology specialists, food chemists, plastics/rubber technology process mechanics, chemists, circular and waste management specialists, druggists, chemical laboratory technicians and chemical technicians, as well as the necessary qualifications for applications.
- Year: Student company internship (in-depth internship)
At the end of the 9th year, all students do a three-week internship in a company of their own choosing. The students are advised and supported by their class teachers. They are encouraged to choose career fields from the MINT sector at an early stage, particularly due to the good career prospects.
In the last year, around 60% of the students completed their internship in the MINT area. To make this possible, 77 companies employed one or more interns. These included last year
- Nees Institute for Plant Biodiversity at the University of Bonn
- Ms.nhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics
- Basell Polyolefine GmbH
- Radio Bonn/Rhein-Sieg
- Federal Agency for Nature Conservation
- MLF Elektrotechnik GmbH
- Norddeutscher Rundfunk
- TVN Production GmbH & Co. KG, film and TV production
- GKN Sinter Metals Components GmbH,
- SGL Carbon AG
- DSS, service provider for CE marking and advice in the area of machines, systems, conversions and technical products
- SICAT GmbH & Co. KG, sophisticated software and hardware solutions and partner for dental practices, clinics
- N & A Computer systems
- Syniverse Technologies Messaging GmbH
- Sarstedt AG & Co. Plastic Processing Company
- Bechtle GmbH & Co. KG, digitalization, cloud, mobility, security and IT – service
- Neugart Building Technology Hennef
- Schenkelberg printing company
- Federal Network Agency for Electricity, Gas, Telecommunications, Post and Railways
- LANUV NRW, Laboratory Bonn / FB 55 & 63
- Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices
- Deutsche Telekom AG
- Zoological Research Center Museum König
- German Museum Bonn
9/10 Parents as MINT ambassadors
In order to give students a further practical insight into MINT careers, our school’s parents are being appointed as MINT ambassadors this school year. Parents who work in MINT professions have agreed to present their professions and answer students’ questions.
Parents should be involved in the WP-NW/INF/TEC groups. The course teachers receive a list with addresses, telephone numbers and professions of the available Parent ambassadors and arrange appointments and times with parents. Depending on the agreement, the career introduction can take place at school or at work.
Education fairs
In order to introduce our students to training opportunities in MINT careers in a practical way, they are offered the opportunity to take part in various educational fairs.
Students in the 9th and 10th grades have the opportunity to visit the training exchange in Bonn. This is a joint event between the Bonn Careers Advice Center, the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg District Crafts Association. It offers young people who are about to choose a career an incentive to find out about vocational training opportunities, particularly in the technical sector.
Every year, interested students in grades 10 – 13 visit the “Dream Job – IT & Technology” educational fair and the “Dream Job – Media” educational fair. Every year we take all Q1 and Q2 students to visit the “Vocatium” career and study fair, where they are informed about MINT-relevant training and study subjects
Cooperation with universities
“Chemistry Trial University for Girls” This offer from the University of Cologne is aimed at girls in the 8th year. On three days, the girls visit the school laboratory of the Chemical Institute of the University of Cologne and experiment on everyday topics under supervision. In this way, you will learn about the importance of the subject in everyday life, get in touch with the everyday life of chemistry students and be informed about the requirements of studying chemistry.
In addition, the school enables talented students from both secondary schools to attend events at the University of Bonn during their school hours. This opportunity is currently being pursued in the fields of biology and computer science.
In the EF, the company internship takes place in the upper school at the end of the school year. The students are supported in finding MINT-specific internships.
In the 12th year we traditionally go to the European University of Applied Sciences in Brühl, where subjects such as business informatics, chemical management and industrial engineering are offered and presented in the dual study program. This year, for the first time, the Technische Hochschule Köln was at our school during the project week and presented its subjects in general, but also specifically computer science courses and the Integrated Design subject.
In collaboration with the University of Bonn the students are given Years 12 and 13 are offered a 1- or 2-week trial course in the MINT subjects during the autumn break. This offer is organized by the “Study? Running!” project, the Bonn student council. With the help of educational role models who supervise the students, the students create timetables for the fall break, during which they can then attend MINT course events.
