Improve your employability with a Bath placement

An undergraduate placement degree from Bath will increase your employability by helping you to gain valuable work experience and make contacts for the future.

Over 50 years ago the University of Bath was established to fuse academic thinking with practical experience. This is still at the core of what we do today.

Our placements can help you to take your ideas and passion in your subject to the next level.

Discover our placement opportunities

Watch a video about the placements opportunities you could have at Bath.

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Placements at Bath

Bath graduates are highly valued and sought after by leading graduate employers.

Two-thirds

The majority of our undergraduates choose a placement or to study abroad1

Top 20

We’re ranked 13th for the universities most often targeted by Britain’s top graduate employers2

89%

89% of our employed UK full-time first-degree graduates are in the top three occupational groups3

Why placements

It’s a great opportunity to get your CV off to an incredible start, have some fun, and gain the skills and experience that set you apart from other graduates.

At Bath, all undergraduate course areas 4/5/6 offer a placement, sometimes called an internship, or study abroad option 7/8. Some placements are paid so you could earn a salary while you work.

Going on a placement gives you the opportunity to work in a business or organisation, apply your academic knowledge and gain practical work experience. Your work may make an impact on the world before you even graduate.

Placements can last between six and twelve months depending on your course and employer. You can even take a placement in different parts of the world.

The majority of students take a placement or study abroad so when you return to finish your degree you'll be back with people you know.

Make contacts for the future

Build valuable professional connections that could help you with your future career.

Company logos

As a placement student, you could work for one of the most well-known companies in the world, choose to volunteer at a national charity or join a tech startup – it's up to you.

On placement you'll get the opportunity to work with other employees or volunteers, helping you to build valuable professional connections. They could help you with your future career by giving you references for job applications.

If you work really hard and impress your employer it may even lead to a full-time job when you graduate.

Previously, students have completed placements at organisations9 like:

  • Apple
  • BMW
  • Deloitte
  • Dyson
  • European Parliament
  • GlaxoSmithKline
  • Goldman Sachs
  • Great Ormond Street Hospital
  • House of Commons
  • Innocent Drinks
  • Superdrug
  • Unicef UK
  • Unilever
  • Williams F1

Benefit from dedicated support

Our specialist faculty placements teams can help you find the placement that’s right for you.

Bath's placements teams are well-placed to help you find the placement that’s right for you. They work with a range of organisations and have developed lasting relationships with the companies and charities they've placed students with in the past.

The team will work alongside you to identify your personal objectives, develop your CV and help you to find a suitable placement. They will also organise practice interviews to help you get the placement you want.

If you are disabled your placements team will work with your employer to understand any adjustments that need to be made and help you to apply for any grants you're eligible for.

Get transferable skills

Develop skills and get hands-on experience that you can transfer to your academic study or a future workplace.

A student on placement in an office

A placement gives you the opportunity to learn from experts who’ll share their knowledge with you. As part of a workplace community, you’ll get to meet colleagues and learn more about what the organisation does.

You’ll also learn how to solve problems, manage your time and work to deadlines. Employers highly value these transferable skills.

Going on a placement will help you to improve your understanding of an employer and industry before you commit to a future career.

Max Robson
‘The more you put in, the more you get out, and if you try something slightly outside your comfort zone, you’ll be sure to feel some reward’
— Max Robson MChem Chemistry including placement year (2018)

Explore undergraduate courses with placements

Find a course

Important information

  1. Over two-thirds of Bath-based students graduated from a course with a placement or study abroad option in the 2017/18 academic year
  2. The Graduate Market in 2019
  3. Compared to 74% of employed graduates nationally – data from HESA Destinations of Leavers from HE 2016/17
  4. Based on undergraduate courses starting in the 2019/20 academic year
  5. Social Work, Pharmacy and FdSc Addictions Counselling have mandatory work-based learning as part of the degree, not year placements
  6. FdSc Sport (Sports Performance) has a placement when taken with a Bachelors top-up
  7. Placements are not guaranteed
  8. Students pay a reduced tuition fee to the University during their placement instead of the full year fee
  9. Company names and logos do not constitute any endorsement or sponsorship by the companies