Placements
A realistic Guide to life at UCLan - written by students!
by Kirsty McMahon, Public Relations 4 yr Sandwich, 4th year, age 21.
A number of courses at the University offer Sandwich Year Placements, which involve working for 12 months in a job relevant to your course. I have just returned from a year working as a PR & Media Assistant for East Midlands Development Agency, and found this an invaluable experience.
Due to the current economic climate jobs are becoming harder to secure and so this is the perfect opportunity to make yourself stand out from the crowd and have the experience to hit the ground running in your first job.
Although this placement takes place in the third year of the course, it is never too early to start preparing.
The University provides students with a lot of help, but you have to be prepared to ask for it, as it won’t be handed to you.
As well as a module on career preparation in year two there is also a Lancashire Business School Placement Office [for LBS students] on hand (located in Vernon building) to give you advice and guidance in finding job opportunities.
One service they offer which I found especially useful was the chance to carry out a mock interview. This gave me a chance to see what a professional interview would entail and meant I was able to practice likely questions I would be asked.
Futures also offer valuable help to students searching for placements (as well as other jobs), for instance they helped me to write my CV; the quality of which I was complimented on in my interview at East Midlands Development Agency.
For students that are prepared to work hard and seek advice where necessary considerable help is available at UCLan, and the benefits are certainly worthwhile.
These services are not just available to placement students, but all students looking to enhance their employability and to gain that dream job!