Criteria and process
What is a placement/internship?
An internship also known as a placement is an opportunity offered by an employer to students, called interns, to work at a firm in order to gain work experience. Interns are usually undergraduates, and most internships last between a month and three months.
An internship should give the student practical skills, workplace experience and greater knowledge of that industry, in exchange for the employer benefiting from the labour.
The following points to consider when hosting an intern at your place of work:
- 3 month placement and 35 hours per week
- Placements should be relevant to degree, ie. not just photocopying
- Ideally, placements should be offered at London Living Wage (£10.55) or equivalent wherever possible. Students should be paid through PAYE.
- Employers are required to have public liability and employers' liability insurance in line with UK industry standards.
- Students will be assessed on their performance during their internship. As part of this, you will be asked to provide feedback to the University.
- We will advertise vacancies from December onwards to ensure that the student can start their placement in May.
Usual recruitment procedure for May 2020 placements
Once you've established you are in the position to recruit an intern you can start the process.
Step one
Complete the required health and safety forms listed below and return them to the placement team, along with the job description.
Step two: Finding an intern
When you are ready to advertise a placement opportunity, we will ask you for a job description and a job advert that the Placements Team will upload to our placement system. The students will then be able to log in and apply for any roles they are interested in.
You can have as much or as little to do with the selection process as suits you. Students can send their applications directly to you or the Placements Team can shortlist a selection of the most suitable candidates for interview. As a work placement provider, you will always have the final say on the students chosen.
Step three: During placement
An internship / work placement experience is the most important factor in shaping young students' perceptions and expectations of the world of work. It helps them to learn about a particular occupation, gain valuable personal skills such as independence and team work, and to understand the expectations of employers.
As an employer you have the opportunity to help shape the future workforce and give your employees the chance to develop their supervisory skills. Getting involved in work experience shows your company is committed to helping the community.
Guidelines: Keys to internship success during the internship programme
- Set goals: Setting internship goals resulting in outcomes that meet the needs of the intern and the employer.
- Establish: Learning objectives and clarify day-to-day activities that will assist in meeting specific learning goals while supporting the needs of the organisation.
- Challenges: Mutually beneficial involving realistic tasks or projects within a three or six-month period.
- Induction: Undertake a well thought out induction for the student intern - remembering this is likely to be a formative introduction to the working environment and your organisation. This should include: tour of the work environment; introduction to key members of staff; corporate technology and software platforms; health and safety induction; identification of a mentor who should undertake a skills audit and identify any additional training needs.
- Mentor: The mentor (line manager) is a key role undertaking: training; motivation and leadership; delegation of tasks; a central point of communication.
