STEM Ambassadors FAQ’s
Are you wanting to give a bit back and inspire young people in your region? Here are our handy FAQ’s to becoming a STEM Ambassador
WHAT IS CLASSED AS A STEM ACTIVITY?
A STEM activity is any activity that involves young people aged 4-18 that focusses on STEM. It could include careers activities or STEM based skills such as team work amongst other activities.
HOW DO I LOG INTO MY ACCOUNT?
As an ambassador you’ll have an online account. Go to www.stem.org.uk and click the button on the top right to login.
HOW DO I REGISTER AS AN STEM AMBASSADOR?
To register as a STEM Ambassador you need to go to www.stem.org.uk and click on ‘register’ in the top right hand corner to create an ambassador account and register as a STEM Ambassador. Please ensure you complete your application with your full legal name as entered on your passport.
You will also need to apply for a DBS check to become a STEM Ambassador and we will be in touch with information on how to do this once you’ve created your account.
WHAT DO I GET OUT OF BEING A STEM AMBASSADOR?
Our STEM Ambassadors come from different backgrounds and volunteers for lots of different reasons and therefore they all get different things from the programme. Some of the most common benefits include an increase in the STEM Ambassadors sense of achievement, an increase in presentation skills, increase in confidence and an increase in the STEM Ambassadors satisfaction in their work.
WHAT DO SCHOOLS AND NON-SCHOOL GROUPS WANT FROM AN AMBASSADOR?
Most of our requests come from schools and they all want slightly different thing but there are some general themes. They are looking for real life applications of the curriculum, the wide variety of careers available, support with STEM clubs and setting real life problems and support with careers such as CV writing or mock interviews.
Non-school groups don’t have a curriculum to follow and so often are less restricted in what they would like and therefore they all have different requests. Some have badges that they are working towards such as scouts and guides and they would like support with these. Non-School groups are often easier to support as their activities take place during evenings and weekends so STEM Ambassadors are often more able to help as it doesn’t require time off work.
HOW MUCH TIME WILL I NEED TO DEDICATE TO BEING A STEM AMBASSADOR?
Being a STEM Ambassador can take as much or as little time as you have available and we always encourage STEM Ambassadors to be as active as possible to get the most benefit from it. We ask you to do a minimum of one activity every 6 months and lots of activities can be done within an hour or so. Other activities take more time and preparation on a regular basis depending on how involved you would like to be.
HOW CAN I DO MORE TO SUPPORT YOUNG PEOPLE IN MY AREA?
Schools and youth groups are always on the lookout for volunteers to help inspire young people. Some of the most popular activities are careers talks, hands on workshops and STEM Clubs. Non-school groups often have badges that link to STEM and always appreciate help achieving them. Contact us if you’d like us to put you in contact with a school or youth group near you.
HOW DO I LOG AN ACTIVITY ONTO MY ACCOUNT?
Any activities you have undertaken that haven’t come through our database needs logging separately. Sign into your account and on the left hand side click ‘activities’, then click ‘add a past activity’ a form then will pop up for you to complete.
If however, you have searched our database and found an activity, then clicked ‘registered your interest’ you will not need to log this again as it automatically logs this for you.
HOW DO I GIVE FEEDBACK ON AN ACTIVITY?
You will be notified via your account that you will need to give feedback on your activity (the feedback facility will be live from spring 2018 onwards)
WHEN IS MY DBS DUE FOR RENEWAL?
From your dashboard, click ‘edit’ your account and click the tab ‘about me; if you scroll down you will see your DBS expiry date.
HOW DO I VOLUNTEER FOR AN ACTIVITY?
To browse activities on our database, log into your account and click ‘Activities’ then click ‘Browse activities’ you can narrow your search by keying in dates and key words on the right hand side. When you choose the activity you would like to volunteer for, click the register your interest button.
Institutions – you may be a member of an institution which ask you to get involved in STEM activities, which you will need to log separately unless the same activity is listed on our website.
Personal contacts – You may know a teacher or a scout leader that may wish to cover STEM subjects with your help. Again you will need to log this activity separately to your account.
Employer – Your employer may set up activities with local schools and wish for you to take part. All these types of activities will need to be logged to your account.