Summer’s drawing to a close now and we can look back at the IML summer assessments. I’m Ian and I’m the communications director for BAIML. I also live here in the alps so I was lucky enough to be able to meet two groups of our aspirants before they took their summer assessments. It’s great to meet up like this and it’s a chance for aspirants to hone their skills and learn from each other.
And, of course, the first rule of IML assessment is you don’t talk about IML assessment, but everyone does ask the secret so I’ll reveal it here…
be passionate, enthusiastic, love what you do, learn while you do it and share it
(There are some other bits about ropes and things that will probably be mentioned during training!)
After it was all over, I asked David, Heather and Jim how it went for them…. (Thanks to Jim for some of these photos!)
I enjoyed my summer assessment experience despite the inevitable nerves! Going out early was definitely a good idea, to recce the area and brush up on local knowledge and flowers. It was great to meet the other candidates (especially on our relaxed day out with Ian Spare) and get to know each other before we had to focus on our assessments.
I thought the Plas y Brenin assessors were excellent and I’d say the style of assessment was supportive but rigorous. It was nice to have the consistency of one assessor for two days and then switch. Four days is a long time and I had too much time to reflect on every little thing I did wrong or could have been better, so it was helpful to receive feedback at the end of each day and realise that overall I was doing well. The time spent on snow patches was more than I had anticipated and served as a good refresher for the winter assessment…I’m looking forward to that already!
Heather Ohly
A lasting memory from the assessment and run-up is the great friendships that have developed. Several of us have progressed through the scheme at a similar pace and it makes sharing ideas, thoughts, plans and syllabus matters all the more manageable.
Assessments are always challenging and pressure will always exist as we have to perform and attain a certain level and standard neither of which can be taken for granted. I liked the daily personal review system. This allowed for improvements and also an awareness of where the assessors think you’re at – very useful.
Experiencing the journey with great people and developing ideas for future work opportunities has been a very positive experience. Spending time getting to know other aspirant leaders and learning from them and listening to their experiences has been so enjoyable.
I have a project I’m working on for which holding the IML award will be a great asset. It’s also been quite a stimulus. We come to these courses and awards at various stages in our lives and for me this feels the right award and the right life moment. The interests I have for work and the direction I intend to go will benefit from having the IML
Jim Langley – http://www.natureswork.co.uk/
My best memory – after 3 days of prep, my flower identification became easier, Linking stories of particular plants, trees, flora and flora and geography with the assessment journey as we travelled through the landscape was a useful tip by the assessors early on and one that should be passed on
And next? Well, I’m fired up and motivated to achieve the International badge of the IML. My winter assessment is booked and I’ve started preparations!
David Howie
We have to thank Plas y Brenin for all their hard work and the assessment team on the ground, Helen Teasdale, Catherine Wilson and Helen Barnard!
