Insight day participant Review

I found the virtual experience really enjoyable. Both the Financial Conduct Authority team and the EmployAbility team made it really clear what was going to be covered, why it was going to be covered and who by. The opportunity to engage with the panel and ask questions at any time was also really appreciated. I think that the opportunity to engage with the recruiters by way of a practice assessment centre question was another great feature.

The panel really seemed to care about the engagement of us as participants. They took numerous opportunities to ask for participant questions and made a real effort to answer all of them during the insight day - they went above and beyond in this domain by extending the insight day by 15 minutes to answer as many questions as possible. It was also really encouraging to have been offered the invitation to connect with the panel on LinkedIn and continue our engagement after the insight day.

As a participant I felt that I was given a lot of guidance and support during the virtual experience by the FCA and EmployAbility teams during the virtual insight day. Being taken through the inclusive practices of the FCA and how much effort they took to ensure that disabled candidates were applying on a 'level playing field' was incredibly reassuring, as was the step by step breakdown of the recruitment process and how the FCA and EmployAbility worked together at each stage to help disabled candidates.

As a participant currently looking at graduate opportunities, the information received during the presentation and during the ongoing Q&A was really helpful. Going through the application process step by step, going through the competency questions and a wider discussion on that topic, and going through a mock assessment centre task (with the opportunity to have your practice answer marked!) were all incredibly helpful. The notes I have taken, as well as a copy of the slides from the insight day, will be hugely beneficial to my graduate job search.

The virtual experience was very well structured. The insight day's agenda was clearly signposted to us as participants and was very sensibly structured, particularly the following: 1) Having an icebreaker task was really useful in getting participants to engage right from the very start of the talk. 2) Covering the practical application advice in the second half of the insight day meant that I was engaged throughout the experience. 3) Placing a break in the middle of the insight day was really useful!

The general atmosphere was really great! The panel made it very relaxed and inclusive, whilst also maintaining an understanding that we were still discussing the serious business of graduate recruitment. It was a very open atmosphere that encouraged audience participation and engagement.

There wasn't much scope for personal training or development, given that this was a three hour event, but what was covered was useful. This was a panel discussion with an ongoing Q&A, which is not a setting that would provide personal training and development. However, during the event there was the opportunity to submit the pre-event mock assessment task to a recruiter at the FCA who will mark our work and provide us with feedback. This was completely unexpected and I thought an excellent opportunity to get feedback and develop as a result. The FCA really went above and beyond my expectations in that respect!

The event covered the application process in a lot of detail, as well as the inclusive culture within the FCA. There was however little discussion about what it would be like to have a full time role within the FCA during the main body of the insight day. I thought this was acceptable as it was not the focus of the insight day but, if I remember right, the panel did answer questions about what it is like to work for the FCA when those questions were raised.

The insight day was very helpful in understanding the inclusive nature of the company. It was great to hear that the FCA really valued inclusivity and are really working to create a level playing field for disabled applicants. Unfortunately we did not get a wider overview of the FCA's wider company culture. A discussion on the core values of the FCA and how they play out in the day to day culture of the organisation would have been useful.

The content was very helpful in highlighting to myself as a disabled participant that, as long as I was a good fit for the organisation, they would help me to achieve my potential within the organisation and, as a result, accommodate my particular needs. I thought that this was excellent as it showed me that I didn't necessarily need to hide my disabilities in order to pursue a career in the industry of financial market regulation.

There was no reason to be reimbursed for this insight day as it was a virtual event.

There were definitly opportunities for networking during the virtual insight day, with opportunities to connect with both the FCA recruiter and the Employability Founder. Being able to connect with both was incredibly useful and provides me the opportunity to ask them questions directly, be signposted to services and be informed about future opportunities. Being able to have access to these individuals is invaluable and I really appreciated being able to network during the insight day.

See above.

We did not find this out during the insight day but I do not think that this needed to be included in the scope of this event.

l would definitely recommend this virtual insight day to a friend! I think that it is a fantastic opportunity for those that are disabled and have an interest in working for the FCA. This is especially so as the points made during the panel discussion were transferrable to other graduate schemes. I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to attend the talk and I would recommend that anyone who is disable and has an interest in the FCA do so next time round.