Work experience, placements and internships

Completing any type of work experience is a great chance to develop and learn a range of new skills, put academic theory into practice, and develop your understanding of the world of work. You'll gain valuable experience which will help you to stand out in an increasingly competitive graduate job market.

What types of work experience can you do?

Sandwich and industrial placements

A fixed-term period of assessed work that forms part of your degree, usually for a year. They're typically advertised by larger organisations and are extremely competitive.

Work experience/placements

This usually refers to a shorter period of experience and may be assessed as part of a module. This type of experience is rarely advertised, so you'll need to be proactive and approach potential organisations.

Internships

These are short periods of formal professional experience. They're typically offered by larger organisations that start advertising in the autumn for students to work the following summer and are usually aimed at penultimate-year students. The application process can be long and competitive.

Smaller organisations that offer internships will advertise closer to the start time and may not stipulate your year of study.

Just because a company is not advertising a placement or work experience opportunity doesn't mean that an opportunity doesn't exist. It can still be worth approaching them directly. This strategy can be time-consuming in the research stages, but can pay off as there is less direct competition.

Follow the steps below:

Make a shortlist of organisations you'd like to apply to. You could use LinkedIn to find organisations where previous GCU students are working.
Once you have decided on the organisations you're going to approach, find the best person to contact. Addressing your application to a named person shows that you have put in some real effort and research and are not just blanket emailing lots of organisations.
Often it will be someone in the HR or recruitment team who'll be the contact, but in a smaller organisation it may be the Managing Director or a head of department. Use LinkedIn to check and find a name, or pick up the phone and ask for a name and contact details. If you already know someone who works there, then ask them who would be the best person to contact.
Consider reaching out initially with a short email. You can decide whether to attach your CV at this point. Or you could offer to forward it on if they would like further information. Have your CV ready if they ask for it, as you'll lose momentum if you take too long.
Begin your email by providing context and be clear about who you are and what you are looking for. After the first short paragraph, the reader should know what you want.
Show them you have done your research on the company and use that to explain why you want to work for them and what you can bring to the role. Remember, it's not just about what you are getting from the experience, but what you can bring.
Be friendly and professional, even though this may not be a formal 'cover letter', it's still your opportunity to make a strong positive first impression.
If you've not heard, follow up by phone or email after a couple of weeks, remain polite and friendly. Give it a couple of weeks. People are busy and they might have missed your initial email. If you've checked back once or twice to no avail, then perhaps it is time to move on. Be persistent without being annoying.
If they've replied to you with a rejection, remember to respond professionally and thank them for getting back to you and let them know that if anything comes up in the future, you'd still be interested.
Manage your applications, and create a tracker system to keep on top of who you've contacted and when. It can get confusing very quickly.

The following article has some useful advice: Discover hidden internships: the art of speculative applications