Join us
Orange welcome sign that reads Royal Geographical Society with IBG.

Become a member and discover where geography can take you.

Join us
Three people sitting, with one person talking and the two others listening attentively.

FAQs for Professional Ambassadors 

Read our Professional Ambassadors frequently asked questions section to help you prepare for becoming a Professional Ambassador.

Will you share my contact information?

We will ask you for your contact details, which will be kept by the Society and not published. However, we also ask you to provide your LinkedIn details which will be shared on our public facing website for schools to contact you directly. 

We will not show your full address online, however, we will show the city or town you are located in.

Please also refer to our privacy notice.

How will teachers contact me?

Most contacts from schools to professionals will be via LinkedIn, with teachers contacting you to connect and to discuss opportunities. Teachers will be advised to add a note when requesting a connection on LinkedIn, so it is clear that this is linked to Professional Ambassadors. Please do check your LinkedIn profile regularly for these messages.

The Society cannot be held responsible for the communication between school and Professional Ambassadors, however if you feel the Society should be made aware of inappropriate behaviours or anything else that causes you concern during this correspondence please email professional@rgs.org

The Society’s Code of Conduct applies to all our activities.

Will I be able to claim expenses for any Professional Ambassador activity?

No, the Society is unable to pay expenses for this activity.

Do I need a DBS to undertake this activity?

DBS checks are not needed for school visits as long as you are accompanied by a member of staff at the school and never left unaccompanied with students or vulnerable adults. By registering for the Professional Ambassadors scheme you are declaring that there are no reasons for you not to work with young people or vulnerable adults.

Will you provide training to support me?

The Society's Education and Professional teams run webinars twice a year to support you. This will provide opportunities for questions, sharing best practice and also reviewing the materials the Society has to support you. We recommend you read our Professional Ambassador resources which provide information to support a range of activities.

What sort of activities could I run?

The school requesting a Professional Ambassador may have some ideas on what they would like you to do, however, they are often very flexible. You may consider working with the young people on a scenario or case study, perhaps some fieldwork in their school grounds, or participating in a careers fair explaining the range of geographical roles in your company or more broadly.

Do ask the school whether there are specific learning points or curriculum areas which they would like to be covered. If this is the case, you should ask the teacher to share information with you around curriculum aims, prior learning and expected outcomes.

What schools should I visit?

We anticipate most visits for Professional Ambassadors will be secondary schools, Key Stage 3 – 5. This includes GCSE and A Level students.

As well as contacts through the Professional Ambassador scheme you may have links to local schools, your past school, or schools your employers work with. We would be delighted for you to use the Society's resources to support these visits.

Ready to sign up?

Please make sure you have read our Code of Conduct and guidance for working with young people before signing up.

I'd like to be a Professional Ambassador