How to get work experience
Employers love it, careers advisors eulogise it, students get sick of hearing about it. Work experience: we know that it’s often the most important thing to have on your CV. We know too that it’s the best opportunity for you to gain knowledge of what a particular job is like and whether it’s the job for you.
But considering that you’re effectively offering to work for free, gaining work experience isn’t always straightforward. So how can you bag some useful work experience?
Sarah Lamb, a recent journalism graduate, knows a thing or two about securing valuable placements:
“I wanted to try out different types of journalism to help me make a decision on where I wanted to take my career, so started on local news - a newspaper in Cornwall called the St Austell Voice. Then I tried to fit my work experience around the type of modules I was about to take at university, so for the investigative journalism one I married that up with a BBC Watchdog placement, which also gave me experience of broadcasting. Then I was looking at the journalist as a specialist so I took a placement with BBC Wildlife magazine, which obviously then gave me experience in another area of journalism.
“I am now working two days a week (unpaid unfortunately) on the Brentwood Gazette in preparation for the news NCTJ qualification.”
How to get a placement
Firstly, you need to decide exactly what sort of job and industry you are interested in. It isn’t advisable to set your heart on one company, send a lovingly crafted cover letter and CV and hope for the best. You need to make numerous applications to various different companies. Ensure the covering letters you send are tailored to each individual company so you can explain exactly why you want to work there.
Send it with a professional-looking, up-to-date CV to the managing director or to the head of the department you are interested working within. (If you want to work as a journalist on a magazine send it to the editor but if you’re interested in working in the design department of a magazine send it to the art director. This way you don’t run the risk of it just being lost in the office because it has been sent to a generic email address.)
Don’t be alarmed if you don’t hear anything back straight away, as a lot of places can take a couple of weeks to reply. However, feel free to follow the email up with a phone call as this way you get to speak to someone directly and can start to build up a relationship with the company before you even start the placement. Most of all, be persistent. Job-hunting requires a thick skin: if you’re turned down just try somewhere else.
Heather Collier, director of the National Council for Work Experience (NCWE), provides the following five tips for securing that edge in the graduate job market.
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Use your Careers Advisory Service
University and college Careers Advisory Services offer a wealth of experience on work experience, and will be able to advise you on where to find the work experience you are interested in as well as helping tailor CVs and covering letters to give the maximum chan.ce of success. This is definitely a resource that should not be overlooked.
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Do your homework – Research, Research, Research!!!
Find out if the company you are applying to has a website and be sure to check it out thoroughly. Companies like applicants to show that they have done their homework on the business. Check trade magazines for industry issues too – companies like applicants to have looked beyond the website – maybe looking at what competitors are doing. It is also important to have some pre planned questions ready to ask about the company – showing a genuine interest in the company and having different insights will help you to stand out from other applicants.
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Presentation
First impressions count! You may have heard it 1000 times before, but turning up for an interview in jeans and trainers is unlikely to impress. An interview is your chance to sell yourself so dress for success – look smart and ensure that you’re not written off as soon as you enter the room.
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Timing is everything
Spring and summer are good times to apply speculatively as employers will be thinking about how they will cover staff holidays - you might be the perfect person to fill the gap.
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Aim for Quality
The NCWE runs an annual Awards scheme to identify the best work experience schemes across every industry sector. Of course all work experience is beneficial, but an organisation with a proven track record of offering quality schemes that provide students with worthwhile transferable skills will ensure that you gain the most from the experience. Look for organisations with recognised programmes, for example those with an NCWE Work Experience Award or Quality Mark accreditation.
What to do once you’ve got a placement
You do only get out of the placement what you put in. Make sure you complete and carry out every task you’re set with enthusiasm, even if it is only making the tea, as it is all character-building and adds to the overall experience. Also don’t be afraid to ask questions – in fact ask as many questions as you can. Find the person who has the job you want and ask them about how they got it and what exactly the job involves – remember they were in your shoes once. Finally, make sure you keep a note of what you are doing day by day as this will help when coming to re-write your CV.
Heather Collier is keen to stress that if you don’t enjoy your work experience, don’t worry, as this is a time to consider other career options before you commit yourself. She says: “The opportunity to ‘try before you buy’, gain employability skills and sector knowledge is not one that should be passed up in a hurry.”
Sarah Lamb says:
“Each placement was obviously different and each invaluable. You have to just go in there with confidence - start well and you will have a good time. The people in the industry I find are generally a certain type - friendly, confident, enthusiastic bunch. I have been extremely lucky, as I have never been treated as a tea lady. In fact on all my placements I've had the tea made for me!
“I think it is definitely different for different jobs. I know some people feel like total slaves, but if you show enthusiasm and ask a lot of questions you definitely get a better response, and more responsibility.”
