Waterstons Visit

A group of Durham Sixth Form Centre Year 13 ICT and Computing students was recently invited to attend an information session at Waterstons headquarters in Durham to find out more about the services provided by the company, to look around the facilities and learn about how to put together a strong job application.

Alison Dent, Waterston’s CSER lead, began by giving an overview of the company, which was set up in Durham thirty years ago and has now grown to become one of the leading specialists in seven key sectors, with 275 consultants across three UK offices and in Sydney, Australia. Students were able to find out about the company’s work within these sectors and they particularly learnt about why businesses need to keep their cyber assets secure and how Waterstons can help them to recover their systems after an attack or breach, which affected 1 in 2 companies in 2024. Students were fascinated to learn more about cyber incidents and the effects on businesses in terms of disruption, financial loss, damage to reputation and regulatory issues. There is a shortage of staff in the cyber sector with a particular shortage of women generally in technology and Waterstons is keen to bridge this gap. Several members of staff talked about their pathways into a digital career and roles within the company, which students found very interesting.

After a tour of the facilities and an overview of the different teams within the building, students were given a masterclass in how to apply for jobs, looking at the top skills required for roles in this industry and how to tackle video questions and assessment centres. Students were also guided through what they should be looking for within companies they apply to work for. We are incredibly grateful to the whole team at Waterstons for organising such an insightful and informative event for our students.