Student placement handbook info

• QA6 Placement Learning
• Code of Conduct
• Why go on placement?
• Finding a placement
• Going on placement
• Health & Safety and Insurance
• Managing placements
• Monitoring progress
• Working Abroad

Related links

• Keynotes student handbook
• Careers advice on placements
• Students' Union guide to placements

Why go on placement?

There are many reasons for undertaking a placement year. The placement can provide practical experience in the application and usefulness of knowledge gained at the University. It offers an unrivalled opportunity to ‘learn by doing’ and will enhance your appreciation of material presented during your studies at the University. You will also have an opportunity to learn as much as possible about the organisation in which the placement occurs.

Some of the benefits include:

Contribution to the final year dissertation

The placement may offer the opportunity to collect data in the field, to make contacts for later fieldwork during your final year, to enable you to develop a much clearer understanding of the field in which you work and about which you may write in your dissertation.

Making sense of what you’ve learned

Much of what you learn in the lecture room and in the library comes alive during a year when you have the chance to use your learning in practical ways.

Transferable skills

A year on placement will enable you to develop the general skills that are needed in the world of work and that are increasingly sought by employers in their graduate recruitment. These skills include:

• Teamwork

  you will get used to interacting with people as colleagues, cooperating, taking the lead when appropriate and taking direction at other times;

• Communication

  verbally with people at all professional levels; in writing, for example, preparing reports and papers that may differ in style to your academic work; and in making presentations;

• Planning

  planning your work, managing your time, and fitting in with the plans made and the priorities set by your placement organisation;

• Problem solving

  you will be faced with practical challenges on placement that demand quite different skills from those required for essays and exam answers;

• Working under pressure

  you may find yourself having to prioritise tasks and juggle competing tasks in order to meet deadlines;

• Decision making

  you will be responsible for making decisions of a different order to those you typically handle in the classroom and the library;

• IT skills

  it is likely that you will have opportunities to improve and develop your IT skills and gain practical experience.

Exploring possible career paths

If you think you might like to work in a particular industry, a year on placement in that field could help you decide whether it is for you. You are also likely to make contacts who may be valuable later when you start searching for work. Your placement organisation may also be the source of an additional referee to use in job applications, whatever career path you choose to pursue.

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