Placements

Placements are a great way to get on-the-job experience within your subject area. These vary from 12-week projects such as SAMPID to full 12-month placements. Undertaking a placement can be beneficial to your subject area knowledge and employability after completion of your award.

Unitemps’ Placement Opportunities

Unitemps offers many placement opportunities for Staffordshire University students wishing to get real hands-on experience, as well as great connections for when they graduate. Read on to find out the benefits of seizing this opportunity!

What type of placement can I do?

There are many placements available to students at Staffordshire University. The main year of industry placement is the most well-known. With many other project based placements also offered.

A Year in Industry

A year in Industry is usually based within an organisation in your subject area. These are usually started after the end of your studies in your second year. It is usually up to you to find a placement at the start of your second year of university, However, academic staff usually post relevant opportunities they find within your course’s teams group or blackboard area and are sure to assist you in finding one if necessary.

SAMPID

Staffordshire Advanced Manufacturing, Prototyping and Innovation Demonstrator is a scheme aimed to drive innovation in advanced manufacturing sectors across the region. The aim of the project is to support businesses to develop new to the market products or components utilising groundbreaking equipment. Funded by Staffordshire University and the European Regional Development Fund (2014-2020) these placements are offered on a paid basis lasting 12 weeks at 15 hours per week.

Throughout the placement, a dedicated academic will support one day per week.

This can be in any of the following areas:

Aero-auto
Energy
Agri-tech
Medical Technology
Applied Materials
Transport
Food and Drink

Within the placement, you would have the opportunity to utilise Staffordshire Universities Advanced Manufacturing Equipment, such as; Metal 3D printers (Solvent washable), Sinter oven (for metal 3D printers), Educational Robot, Collaborative Robot, Inspection Camera, Spin coater and Probe station.

SDIPS

Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships, this programme is aimed at collaborating with small to medium enterprises to enable digital innovation within their organisation. These projects last for 24 weeks and are focussed on three areas:

Digital Innovation Partnerships—Focused on technological transformation to support the development of new processes, services or products and their accompanying transformational change within their business.
Business Intelligence Partnerships—Focused on supporting businesses to unlock the power of the data they collect, utilising a range of business intelligence tools and techniques.
Social Challenge Innovation Partnerships—Staffordshire County council priorities that a business can pitch to develop prototype solutions to.

These projects are all full time for the duration of 6 months, with the support of an academic for half a day per week.

Why a Placement?

Instead of going into your third year of your degree, a student placement is an option to take a year out to work for an established industry relevant to your area of study. What’s the point of taking a year out when you could just finish that degree and get a job after?

Here’s a few reasons a placement may be the right option for you:

You will get real industry experience which will increase your employability and skills.
It will also help you apply what you have learnt in theory, so you will have a fantastic, competitive edge when entering the job market (and increased subject area knowledge!).
You will also figure out if the career you’re pursuing is really right for you and the different job roles within that sector that you may want to consider.
You may even be able to find a salaried placement.
And lastly, the obvious: you get great contacts! TopResume states that ‘60 percent of jobs are found through networking.’, so being able to reach out and build relationships will be vital to your job-search in the future.
Many times, students have been offered guaranteed graduate roles whilst taking a placement (Wouldn’t you love to spend your third year at Uni knowing you have a job lined up, with a company you are already comfortable with straight afterwards?!).

What’s a Placement Like?

Different for every organization and sector, a placement will technically be a full-time role. You will get a chance to develop your knowledge and skills practically which you build your skill set; this will be a fantastic head start when entering your final year of your degree! You will also work alongside an experienced team too, which will be a great way to network and ask questions.

Some Stats to Think About

According to ISE Development Survey, the importance of work experience is highlighted by the fact that 87% of respondents agreed that a student who had completed an internship had a more enhanced skill set – than those who did not.
They also found that employers rehired an average of 43% of their placement students.
It is estimated that the average salary of students who have completed sandwich placements is 8% higher than those that did not, six months after graduating.

Where does Unitemps Come In?

Register with us on www.Unitemps.com where you will regularly see placements being posted. So far, we have placed 15 students on a placement since 2021 and we are excited to give more students the opportunity to develop their skill set. We have 6 live placement opportunities in a variety of sectors.

Other ways to get a Placement with Staffordshire University

MyCareer (Online/Science Centre):

The Career Coaches are there for you all week to support your with tailoring a CV or cover letter, coaching you for your next placement with mock interviews and supporting you in building your portfolio. Placement opportunities are also advertised on MyCareer, so check regularly!

Contact them via online (MyCareer), going into a drop-in session at the Science Centre, or emailing them at careers@staffs.ac.uk.

Employability Hub (Microsoft Teams):

Students will be automatically enrolled onto this page, where there will be jobs and placement opportunities regularly updated on their files. All opportunities will relate to a specific degree area, so that all students have a good chance at securing employment.

Useful Resources:

www.ratemyplacement.co.uk
www.prospects.ac.uk
https://www.studentjob.co.uk/placement
LinkedIn
Indeed
TotalJobs
Gradcracker
unitemps.com
mycareer.staffs.ac.uk
Bright Network
Google Jobs
Reed
TargetJobs
SimplyHired

Register with Unitemps Today:

https://www.unitemps.com/Register/Candidate

Follow Unitemps on Twitter for Regular Updates! @UnitempsStaffs

5 Tips for (Virtual) Interview Success!

Since the pandemic, we have all had to adapt to newer ways of communicating—with family, friends, and potential employers. For landing a new job, first impressions have always been important, but it is now even more important to show your best self through your digital screen. So, how do you do that? Here are the top 5 tips to ensure that you are ready to ace your next virtual interview!

1: Prep your Tech. ⚙️

While you may be fully prepared to talk about your qualifications and work experience, what good would that be if your connection cut-out midway during a great conversation? Here are some things to look out for before your interview:

Have an ethernet cable plugged in to avoid any unwanted disruptions.
Rehearse the interview with a friend to ensure your camera, microphone, and connection are working sufficiently.
Before your interview, silence your phone, close irrelevant tabs, and try to reschedule any deliveries for a later time.
Add your interview’s time and date into your calendar so that you are ready on time.

2: Dress the Part. ?

Whilst the interview may take place in your bedroom, make sure you have taken the steps to dress out of your comfy pyjamas and into something more formal and appropriate.

There are usually one of three main types of dress-code suggested for the interview (research the company’s dress-code beforehand):

Professional
Business-Casual
Smart-Casual

Making this effort will show that you care for the role, whilst bringing a sense of normality to the virtual interview. There is also a science to it: researchers have found that dressing the part improves your focus, productivity, and performance, so it is a win-win situation for both you and the employer!

3: Look Around You! ?

Working from home has brought about memorable and viral videos and news articles, but whilst it is funny and relatable, it is best to remove those distractions for your interview. Not only will a quiet and clean background look professional, but it will also show the employer that you have an environment where you can work well in and will not be distracted by.

Look around your space and ask yourself these questions:

Are there any offensive or inappropriate objects in the background?
How would I feel if I saw my that in my interviewer’s background?

If you can add a ‘background filter’ which looks professional in your interview, use it if you feel you cannot alter your space yourself. The ‘blur’ effect or a simple office background effect will be appropriate. Do not put any inappropriate filters on your camera.

Also, whilst it is hard to control background noise, do your best to find a quiet space with a good connection. Invest in some soundproof headphones, so that you can focus on the interview. The headphones will also reduce any feedback sound.

4: The “Virtual” Handshake ?

During your interview, it will be tricky for your interviewer to read your body language, so it is important to recreate an authentic experience as best you can. In an in-person interview, it is important to maintain eye contact, so look up at the camera to show that you are attentive, approachable, and friendly. Also, show that you are passionate about the position by smiling and sitting up straight.

After your interview, send a quick ‘thank you’ email to your interviewer to show that you appreciate them giving you their time. You could also ask a quick question about the role that you forgot to ask during your interview to show more interest in the position.

5: Be Prepared!?

Now that you have the right space, outfit and technology for your interview, the best tip is saved for last: be prepared!

Thoroughly research the company you would like to work for. The interviewer would love to see that you care about the company and that you took the time and effort to decide that the job is right for you too.
Write some notes that would be useful for the interview. Also, prepare any documents or relevant portfolio required for the interview beforehand.
Let your lovely personality shine through. Do not be too scripted, so that it hinders your character and wonderful qualities. Your interviewer wants to see how well you will gel with the team, so stay professional and friendly.

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