Get work experience

What is a placement or internship?

The terminology of placements and internships are often used interchangeably in the industry.

A sandwich year placement is an optional full-time work experience for 9 – 12 months, between the second (Level 5) and final year of study (Level 6). You are still considered a student during the sandwich placement and will gain sandwich recognition on your degree certificate on successful completion of the experience. Full information accessible here, including the placement and academic eligibility criteria, deadline for approval and tips/guidance.

Module-based placements are within some of the programmes of study at UoG. These placements are significantly shorter than the sandwich year, and are often part time. The criteria for module-based placements vary across each programme, therefore please ask your programme leader for further details.

Internships are usually shorter opportunities ranging from 5 working days to 6 months, with a range of part-time and full-time opportunities taken alongside study or over the summer. The University has two internship schemes (optional). CHEM1144 is a scheme open to Science students in the Faculty of Engineering and Science, and the Certificate of Industrial Studies is open to all first and second year students.

Why complete a placement or internship?

• Gain a better understanding of your chosen career sector
• Enhance your CV
• Gain valuable networking connections
• Put your degree level knowledge into practice, which is proven to boost your degree grade
• Develop transferrable skills such as teamwork, communication and prioritisation
• Gain a competitive edge when applying for a graduate job.

What should I do before applying?

• Check that your programme has sandwich mode if applicable
• Book an appointment with an Employability Skills Advisor to fine-tune your application skills, CV and Cover Letter, via Target Connect
• Book a 1-2-1 with a placement advisor or workshop via Target Connect
• International students need to check their visa conditions
• Consider speaking to student finance + Student Finance England

When should I apply?

Internships are often sporadically released by organisations, so you should be checking regularly. Remember, recruitment can take months. Therefore, we suggest you begin looking as early as possible.

It is a good idea to consider an internship in Year 1 (Level 4) of study, to give you a competitive edge when applying to sandwich year placements, although this is not essential.

For sandwich placements you should start looking and applying at the start of your second year (Level 5) , you can even start looking at the end of your first year. Most opportunities are released between September and January. However, positions can be secured as late as July. The University of Greenwich often have sandwich year placement opportunities, which go live mid-February onwards.

However, there is no ‘rule’ as businesses recruit at various times, so we suggest looking throughout the year, as new opportunities will come up. We suggest looking once a week, using a variety of approaches such as websites, newspapers, direct contact, networking, career fairs etc.

Placements / internships are rarely advertised to graduates, therefore please consider work experience before your study finishes..

What are my responsibilities?

We will help as much as possible, but it is your responsibility to find and secure a placement!

We can help you develop your application skills, including CV and Cover Letter guidance and Mock Interviews. We can also show you how and where to find opportunities. However, you need to take our advice and be actively applying.

If live opportunities come into the University, we will share these on Target Connect and within our weekly (Thursday) Spotlight Newsletter (Placements, Internships and Insight Days Edition).

How do I apply for placements or internships?

• Each employer has their own recruitment process, you should ensure you know exactly what is required of you.
• Processes include but are not limited to submitting an application form / CV and Cover Letter, online psychometric test, assessment centre, video, telephone and/or face to face interview.
• For smaller companies which do not offer a set work placement scheme or internships within their organisation, you can contact them directly to enquire whether there are work experience opportunities available.
• Research companies you would like to work for and send them a CV and Cover Letter explaining what interests you about their organisation and what value you would bring.
• The University also offers a vast range of e-learning resources, which will help you make effective applications.

What steps do I take if I have secured a placement or internship?

• Sandwich year placements and internship schemes such as the Certificate of Industrial Studies or CHEM1144 must be approved before they begin. Please see the links for the approval process, deadlines, academic eligibility criteria and placement criteria.
• If you are completing an internship outside of the above schemes, there is no approval process.
• If you have secured a position to be used for a module-based placement, please contact your programme leader for approval instructions.

Will I get paid?

Short, credit-bearing work placements may not be paid. However, sandwich placements are usually paid at the going rate for entry level roles in the relevant industry. We will only promote paid opportunities.

Will you stay in touch during sandwich placement years?

Yes – absolutely. You still have access to university services and support such as the library, employability and wellbeing team. You will be allocated a placement tutor who will be a point of contact if you have any concerns, and who will visit you twice during the placement year. You'll still have access to tutors during a placement year.

At the end of a placement year, there is a 'Recall Day' organised by our team, where we help you settle back into study and make the most of your experience with advice on how to apply it to your CV, LinkedIn and in interviews.

Additional Information

If you are receiving support via Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) then please note that this support will not be available to you whilst you are on a sandwich year placement. You have the option to apply for Access to Work for similar support. Further information about organisations that support disabled students can be found here. If you have any questions regarding this then please feel free to contact Student Wellbeing Service on wellbeing@gre.ac.uk.