I often meet applicants who have done so much research for their Stage 1 application for the Global Talent Visa endorsement in digital technologies.
So when I first met Tetiana after she attended my Educational Webinar, it was very clear that Tetiana was ready. However, she reached a point in her research and her application process that she became “stuck” on which documents to present, whether they would be acceptable to the Tech Nation Assessor’s and more importantly, were they good enough?
All applicants must submit 15 documents including selecting the strict criteria set by Tech Nation. Before 1 December 2020, all applicants must also select 3 out of 6 criteria and submit only 10 documents against the 3 criteria. This can be an overwhelming process because sometimes, documents may not fit the criteria and applicants may need help in choosing which criteria and which documents to submit. There are also questions on what content that document needs to show, how to structure each document and whether they are good enough to meet the criteria.
After Tetiana and I selected Key Criteria 1 to show examples of innovation, Qualifying criteria 1 to show significant impact and Qualifying criteria 2, to show potential leading talent, we spent 8 weeks working through each of her 15 documents to ensure they all met the criteria and her application was as strong as it could be.
Not only were Tetiana’s examples of innovation, impact and potential leadership were relevant to the digital tech sector, it was the content and structure of her documents that I consider was her strongest point in her application.
Tetiana is a UX designer and designers have a very creative way of showcasing their work, turning their projects into stories and creating diagrams that are visually appealing. It was such a pleasure to work with Tetiana to transform her 3 page CV into a collection of her work that showed her innovation, impact and potential leadership in UX design while also meeting the strict criteria and guidelines set by Tech Nation.
Like most applicants I work with, questions such as “am I good enough” go through their minds constantly and as I worked with Tetiana, her confidence grew each week. Tetiana is clearly very talented in the digital technology sector and she provided excellent examples of innovation, working on Covid-19 projects, showing significant impact to innovative product led digital technology companies and showed potential leadership through her role as a judge of a design award as well as winning these awards herself.
It was a wonderful feeling when Tetiana advised me that she was endorsed with exceptional promise in just 10 days after submitting her application. Despite my reassurance to Tetiana that she had a very strong application, I knew Tetiana was silently worried about not being successful. So when she found out she was endorsed, I could sense her huge sigh of relief and during our celebratory zoom call, I saw a big smile that finally came through after working with her for 2 months.
Having been through the process myself, I know first hand how stressful it is. There is a heavy weight on your shoulders until you receive the successful decision and my role now is to help carry that weight for applicants like Tetiana through this process by providing 121 support throughout the whole process.
I am so proud of Tetiana, for being open, trusting me to help her shape her application, trusting the process and more importantly, trusting herself. Because this process is about showcasing your best work, putting your best foot forward, coming out of your comfort zone and showing confidence through your evidence that you are talented and deserve to be in the UK to make a significant impact to the UK digital tech sector.
Now that Tetiana is a successful recipient, her advice is:
1. Speak to previous successful recipients;
2. Do lots of research;
3. Read Michelle’s blogs 🙂 and reach out to Michelle for help;
4. Structure is key when you are working on your documents;
5. Put yourself into the Assessor’s shoes so ensure everything is clear and concise, similar to a business case or pitch!; and
6. Use diagrams where possible!
Watch my Inspirational How We Did it Webinar where I interviewed Tetiana about her journey. She really is an inspiration! And now she can’t stop smiling 🙂
For more videos, Subscribe to my you tube channel where you can access more inspirational and educational webinar content.
Please note Tetiana submitted before 1 December 2020. After 1 December 2020, Tech Nation have published new guidelines. Read more about the changes and new guidelines here!
