# Welcome to SMIRK Unit
9 - Preparing for
placement

- What is placement?
- The employer's perspective
- The student's perspective
- What do you aim to achieve?
- Aims - Career management
- Aims - Work culture
- Aims - People skills
- Aims - Organisational awareness and skills
- Aims - Personal impact
- Back to main index

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# What is placement?

Work experience is any time spent with an employer increasing your skills and knowledge. This could be a year long placement or internship where you might complete a specific project and work in a variety of departments or a period of a few weeks where you can sample the sector or industry that you are interested in. Some students use the Christmas and Easter vacations for work experience placements or you might spend one day 'shadowing' someone at work.

But work experience can still usefully be gained from situations that you set up for yourself (for example, half a day a week working voluntarily in a school) and all the skills and experience you can gain from a part-time job.

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# The employer's perspective

##### This is what two graduate employers say about the value of work experience:
"Graduates with a wealth of good quality work experience (voluntary or paid) have varied learning experiences and challenges that develop skills and competencies such as - commercial awareness, results focus, self development, tenacity, project management, diplomacy, flexibility, resilience and customer focus. These are the key attributes that are required to be successful on our graduate programme and experienced graduates are typically able to articulate and demonstrate these skills/competencies within application forms and interviews more effectively". Rebecca Fielding Group Graduate Programme Manager | "We have found that graduates who have spent some time gaining work experience during their studies perform very strongly during interview. We are always looking for applicants who are born leaders, work well as part of a team, have bags of initiative and most importantly, possess strong communication skills. Of the graduates that we recruit, those who have already worked in a similar customer facing environment tend not only to be more competent and developed in many of these skills sets but are also able to hit the ground running. It also demonstrates to employers that an applicant has a responsible attitude to work and has experienced life beyond the confines of an academic establishment". Sara Varo Recruiting Manager

Activity: Are these statements true or false?

- It is a way of finding out whether a particular job or type of work would suit me.
- The experience wil be good for my cv and application forms.
- Work experience will give me something to talk about in interviews
- I might get paid!
- There's no point in doing work experience unless it is in the job that I want to do when I graduate.

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# The student's
perspective

Work Experience is an oppurtunity to try out Jobs and find out what type of role would suit you after Graduation. It is also the major route into finding Graduate work. More than a third of of Sandwich Placement Students go on to work for the same Employer permanently (Source: Incomes Data Service, 2005).

To make the most of your work experience it is important to consider what you can learn from each of the following categories. Choose two or three outcomes which are important for you from the list. You can then note them down and use them as the basis for a personal work experience action plan.

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# What do you aim to
achieve?

Academic and Personal Learning
Enhancing the quality of your academic knowledge, learning and the application of that learning to the workplace. Here are some examples:

- Investigate vocational training and funding opportunities such as post-graduate awards
- Apply your academic discipline in the real world, in other words, the work place
- Continue with an existing academic interest
- Further develop knowledge of a specific subject area
- Broaden academic learning
- Gain the ability to transfer academic skills to new situations
- Seek academic or other credit such as NVQ, or a professional qualification.
- Gain the Confidence to apply knowledge in the work situations
- Take a greater responsibility for your own learning and development
- Improve research skills, perhaps develop new methods of gathering and analysing information.

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# Aims - Career
Management

Maximising the experience in order to develop your self-reliance and career management skills to boost your career potential. Here are some examples:

- Review and evaluate learning and performance
- Opportunities such as post-graduate awards.
- Find out how organisations recruit and select people: what they look for.
- Find out about the organisations connected to the work you are in, like suppliers, and customers.
- Seek feedback on your development from others, for example, a mentor, buddy, or supervisor.
- Use your experiences to think about what you really want to do with the rest of your life!
- Find out what really motivates and interests you.
- Look at how you cope with stress.
- Explore a range of career opportunities in existing and growth areas. Broaden your horizons.
- Look at how to cope with uncertainty, and make informed decisions.
- Record your experiences - keep a log or diary.
- Ensure that you and the organisation are clear of what is expected of each other.
- Gain an insight into a sector of employment.
- Improve organisation, planning, project and time management skills.
- Increase self-confidence.
- Try taking the initiative.
- Take advantage of in-house training.
- Find new role model.
- Recognise the benefits of work experience regardless of its status, for example bar work.

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# Aims - work culture

Maximising your understanding of how organisations work and the relative benefits of different work cultures. Here are some examples:

- Understand the way the organisation works, for example, how decisions are made.
- Make the most of the experience (you might not get another chance!).
- Take precautions! think about health and insurance.
- Learn how to fit in, you could develop an appropriate sense of humour.
- Try something new - take risks or embark on a new venture.
- Be sensitive to cultural differences in the work place.
- Stay positive, have a good time and enjoy yourself.
- Develop a professional approach - accountable, disciplined, responsible and punctual.
- Be prepared to volunteer, get involved in other projects and opportunities.
- Learn how to manage the boss.
- Gain a sense of the politics - note who holds the power.
- Learn to make sound judgements about work and colleagues

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# Aims - People skills

Gaining a broad range of people, team, and client skills, whilst maximising the learning from individuals in a variety of work situations. Here are some examples:

- Develop a network of useful contacts. Meet lots of people and make new friends.
- Learn to delegate.
- Improve team working skills.
- Improve communication skills, such as giving presentations and listening.
- Improve interpersonal skills, such as your ability to interact with a wider range of people.
- Develop an ability to lead others, for example, manage people in a team.
- Learn to deal with colleagues, including the difficult ones.
- Develop persuasion skills.
- Develop effective negotiation skills.
- Learn to accept and apply criticism.
- Develop assertiveness.
- Recognise group dynamics and team roles

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# Aims - organisational
awareness and skills

Developing a range of general and specialist skills, which meet the needs of your organisation and are transferable to broader work contexts. Here are some examples:

- Try developing entrepreneurial skills.
- Improve basic information technology skills like word processing, spreadsheets.
- Develop a creative ability.
- Develop financial skills, like the ability to read accounts or manage personal finances.
- Develop project management skills.
- Develop business skills that are transferable.
- Increase business knowledge of organisations.
- Develop specialist or advanced IT skills.
- Learn to solve work problems effectively.
- Learn about your strengths and weaknesses.
- Develop assertiveness.
- Learn to communicate in a professional environment, for example report writing.
- Learn to be flexible and adaptable - take risks.
- Show enthusiasm, motivation, flexibility and a willingness to learn

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm

# Aims - Personal impact

Maximising your impact, becoming indispensable and providing evidence of the value you add to the organisation. Here are some examples:

- Provide an objective view, such as an ability to observe, analyse and solve problems.
- Provide an extra pair of hands, for example the project no one has time to do.
- Understand how to add value to the organisation.
- Promote the impact of any achievements made.
- Challenge the norm and bring new ideas.
- Improve the organisation, expand and develop publicity and customer services.
- Improve the organisation's performance, for example, sales.
- Pass on the benefits of your experiences to others.
- Improve the organisation's profile through marketing or market research.
- Bring in new expertise and skills, like fund raising skills.
- Improve IT systems.
- Improve administration procedures.
- Improve the working environment and enhance ethical values.
- Help the organisation become more effective.
- Free up people's time

Now you have clarified your aims, you can go on to our module on getting results from your placement.

####

######
SMIRK - Preparing for placement by Leeds Metropolitan University Employability Office, modified by Marion Kelt GCU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Based on a work at http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/metoffice/employability/resources/learning_objects/workexperience/index.htm