Professional Welsh Conference to sixth formers

Some of the Welsh Professional crew

Next week (October 4, 2014) the Welsh Department at Aberystwyth University will be holding a Professional Welsh Conference for sixth formers to highlight a vocational BA degree that teaches valuable skills for the workplace.

Presentations will be made by Dylan Iorwerth, Managing Editor of Golwg, Branwen Huws, Head of Marketing at Y Lolfa, and Delyth Jewell, Head of Research for Plaid Cymru in Parliament, London, and winner of Researcher of the Year at Westminster this year.

"The conference will offer a taste of the Professional Welsh degree," said Dr Rhianedd Jewell, Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol Lecturer in Professional Welsh at Aberystwyth University.

"There will be a series of presentations by staff and students from the department, as well as guest speakers, who will discuss their careers working with the Welsh language."

The degree incorporates elements of the traditional Welsh course and meets employers' demands for experienced workers with suitable professional skills.

The BA degree has been running for three years now, and this year the first cohort of students graduated with excellent results: 57% of the students graduated with a first class honours, and the remaining 43% graduated with a high 2:1.

Dr Jewell reiterated, "The employability statistics of our department also confirm the value of the Welsh language in Wales today where the Welsh Language Commissioner is increasing the emphasis placed on the Welsh language in the workplace. The value of a Welsh degree as a qualification is not often realized.

"Figures collected annually by the University Careers Service show that a very high percentage (96.3% in the case of first degree students and 100% in the case of research students at Aberystwyth’s Welsh Department) manages to get a job that is suitable for their qualification 6 months after graduation.

"The conference will show that the language opens doors and that we at Aberystwyth offer vocational skills which are key for career development after graduation.

"In addition to teaching traditional modules in Welsh language and literature, we are now teaching modules which cover translation, administration and marketing in Welsh, and we offer a number of professional work experience placements."

The department also aims to launch a Masters Degree in Professional Welsh in September 2015 which will provide continuity to the BA and offer similar career opportunities to students from different academic backgrounds. 

The conference is free of charge and is open to sixth formers and their parents. For more information or to register for the conference, please contact Dr Rhianedd Jewell on 01970 628539 / rmj15@aber.ac.uk

AU40714

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