It is important to start looking early as some companies may, for example, open applications for summer placements in the summer of the year prior to the placement. 

There isn’t just one convenient, definitive source we can point you towards in order to find placements and internships; you need to be proactive, research a range of information sources, and keep an eye on them so that you don’t miss out on new opportunities becoming available.

Also keep in mind that work experience may be important for successful applications to postgraduate study courses that are essential prior to entering careers in certain areas (e.g. teaching, psychology, law); so you need to plan ahead really early in order to get the necessary experience under your belt before course application deadlines.

Here are some information gateways to help you find and monitor work experience opportunities as the come on stream:

Firstly, go to our main Jobs page at http://www.swansea.ac.uk/careers/jobs/.  At the top of the page, follow the ‘UK national and international vacancies’ link to the database of all types of vacancies notified direct to the Careers Service.  In this database you can search specifically for work experience placements and internships.  In fact, you can create and save searches according to your particular interests which saves you time when you go back to check for any new opportunities coming up.

 
An excellent option for opportunities in Wales is the GO Wales (Graduate Opportunities Wales) placements programme:  http://www.gowales.co.uk.  Placements are typically with SMEs (Small and Medium Size Enterprises) in the local area.  SMEs operate in a context that tends to be much more volatile and subject to change than large graduate recruiters, and therefore recruitment timescales and closing dates tend be quite different.  GO Wales placements tend not to appear before April/May, so you should start looking on the GO Wales website from about Easter onwards for summer opportunities.  Also, GO Wales placements are not filled on a ‘first come first served’ basis.  See further information and contact details on our Careers website at http://www.swansea.ac.uk/careers/jobs/GOWalesplacements/. GO Wales also offers short unpaid Work Tasters.

Graduate Prospects

The Graduate Prospects website, which you will also see featured on our Jobs page, is the key Careers Information portal for UK Higher Education students and includes a number of sections that enable you to find placements, internships and employers offering the types of work experience relevant to your needs.  Here are direct links, and a brief guide, to some specific sections of this site that can help you:

Work experience and internships on the Graduate Prospects website: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/work_experience.htm

Job hunting tips:  http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/jobhunt
This includes a ‘networking’ link to information on using contacts and making speculative applications – many good opportunities are not advertised.

Finding graduate employers:  http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/CoProfiles
Search for employers according to the job category you are interested in, read company profiles and link to their websites for information on opportunities currently open for applications.

Options with your subject:  http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/options
This section covers a wide range of degree disciplines, and for each one the profile includes a ‘job options’ link which guides you towards job type profiles relevant to your degree that are listed in the ‘Explore types of jobs’ section outlined below.  Having said that, remember that employers are often much more interested in all your skills, personal qualities and experience than your degree discipline – so you can widen the scope of your search and think about all kinds of different career areas that might interest you rather than focusing on options specifically related to your subject.

Explore types of jobs:  http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/occupations
Here you will find detailed profiles for many different types of jobs.  Each profile includes a link labelled ‘typical employers/vacancy sources’ so you can track down potential employers in your field of interest and have a look at the graduate recruitment sections of their websites to see what kind of work experience opportunities they may be offering.

Disability:  Finding positive employers:  http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/disability
This offers information to help you find positive employers.

Here are just a few examples of sites where you can find information about work experience and professional postgraduate training for specific careers:

Civil Service Recruitment Gateway:  http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/jobs/ 
Find  opportunities for both undergraduates and graduates.

Law Careers.Net:  http://www.lawcareers.net/
Information and advice to help you plan your timetable for action if you want to become a Solicitor or Barrister.

Training and Development Agency for Schools:  http://www.tda.gov.uk/
Have a look at the ‘Get into teaching’ section of this site for advice on relevant work experience.

The British Psychological Society:  http://www.bps.org.uk/
The Careers section has detailed information on professional training routes into various careers related to Psychology and getting work experience.

Charity Works:  http://www.charity-works.co.uk  
A graduate development programme for the charity sector.

In general, it’s worthwhile to find out the relevant professional bodies for careers you are interested in and see what Careers information they may have on their websites to help you find placements and internships.

The following sites (also featured on our Jobs page) enable you to search for placements and internships as well as more permanent opportunities:

Rate My Placement:  http://www.RateMyPlacement.co.uk - a resource for students, universities and employers involved in work placements and internships.  This site provides students with peer-to-peer insights and information in the form of stuctured reviews, blogs and advice.  You can search for placements as well as submitting reviews of your own experiences in work experience placements. 

TARGETjobs:  http://targetjobs.co.uk/graduate-jobs/

Inside Careers:  http://www.insidecareers.co.uk/

http://www.gradjobs.co.uk – a website of the Venture Marketing Group that organises national careers events, including work placement fairs.

Websites that advertise jobs and placements often allow you to save searches according to your preferred criteria, generate automatic email alerts and make use of RSS/news feeds which can, of course, save you time.

If you want to try and find a placement near your home town, you could also try looking at the Careers web pages of other universities that may be nearby.

If you wish to come and discuss your individual needs with a Careers Adviser please see our page on making appointments at http://www.swansea.ac.uk/careers/Makingappointments/ where you can book an appointment online.  Appointments are 20 minutes long, and we ask that you do as much research as you can to prepare for your appointment and make the most of it.

You can also email your Careers questions to us through our E-guidance service at:  http://www.swansea.ac.uk/careers/Advicebyemail/.