My top 10 tips for a successful placement year

A few weeks ago I was adding some new web content and one of the pages was 10 reasons to go on a placement year. The page offers some very useful tips on why to go on a placement, so I thought I’d give some different tips on how to make your placement year as successful as possible!

1. Ask if unsure!

This may sound extremely simple, but sometimes if you don’t understand a job you’ve been given simply asking the person to clarify what is needed can save you so much time! It saves you from sitting there for 20 minutes trying to work it out, with you  having to ask anyway. Nobody will think badly of you – in fact they will probably prefer it as it shows you’re willing to ask for help and want to understand.

2. Learn from your mistakes.

Rather than worrying about something that has happened always evaluate what went wrong and how you would do if differently next time. The whole point of a placement is to learn about working life and develop as a person so it’s natural that you’ll do something wrong every now and then. Once you’ve learnt you should hopefully never make the same mistake again!

3. Gain knowledge from your colleagues.

All of your colleagues will have different experience and knowledge, make sure you learn as much from them from possible. Learn about how they have gained jobs and what that did to gain a graduate job, and of course all the technical knowledge they have. You may even be able to teach your colleagues some of your knowledge too!

4. Get into a good sleeping pattern.

The idea of getting into work for 9.00am every morning can be a daunting one, but it is a lot easier than you first think. Once you get out of the student habits of staying up late and getting up late it feels good to have a routine. It’ll also make those 9.15 lectures in your final year a lot easier!

5. Use your personal tutor.

Each student gets assigned a personal tutor for the year, make sure you contact them if you have any queries or problems with your placement. Your personal tutor is there to help you have a successful placement year so make sure you keep in contact with your progress too.

6. Develop your skills.

You’ll have learnt lots of technical knowledge from your first 2 years at university, but it can be hard to develop as a person. The placement year is perfect for this, as it will give you more confidence, improve your organisation and time management. This will all help during your final year.

7. Make as many contacts as possible.

When you’re looking for a graduate job after university, knowing lots of people in the industry you want to work in will give you a huge boost. The placement year is a great opportunity to meet lots of new people so make sure you fully take advantage of this!

8. Get used to working life.

If you’ve never had a full time job before it can come as quite a shock. Over the year it will help you understand how companies are run on a day to day basis. It will get you used to things such as meetings, reporting systems and fire drills. It will also help you work out if the area you’ve always been planning on working in is the one for you!

9. Get to know your colleagues.

Make sure at the start of your placement you get to know exactly what your colleagues job roles are. This will ensure that when you have a query you know exactly who to contact and it’ll save you a lot of time! Also let the relevant people know what your best skills are, then you’ll be much more likely to be given the jobs you’re good at and want to do!

10. Keep in contact with the Placement Unit.

After all the help they gave you throughout the 2nd year in getting a placement make sure you keep in touch with how you’re getting on! It’s nice for them to know how you’re doing and if the dream job they helped you get has lived up to the promise. They’re also there if you have any problems too!

So there you have it, my top 10 tips! I hope this little guide helps.