Your Placement Journey Toolkit is designed to support you to get the best from your placement experience. It will help you to think about your placement, looking at your expectations, recognising your own responsibilities alongside those of your university and placement provider.
Aligned with the Engineering Placements Toolkit, designed for education institutions and employers, this toolkit aims to support your placement experience in three key stages: before, during and after placement.
Your placement provides you with new learning experiences, knowledge, and skills that will be assessed by your university and valued by future employers.
Top Tips
- Keep in touch with the people you’ve met and worked with.
- Update your CV. Be proactive and engage with your Careers Service or Professional Institution for support.
- Share your experience with the next generation of students.
- Build your language skills. In the global market, knowing more than one language can be a plus.
Assessment
On completion of your placement, ensure that you have submitted all the documents and reports on the due date.
Evaluate the placement itself and prepare for meeting with your personal tutor and placement coordinator.Â
Reflect and evaluate your achievements
Look at what you’ve enjoyed the most and benefited from during your placement experience.
How do you assess your skills development? Reflect on what you have achieved and the skills you have acquired to enable this.
Reflect on what have you enjoyed the most, what have you and least, and why.
Your future plans
Write your CV, and give specific examples based on the experience you acquired during your placement.
Contact your Careers Service for individual advise on your future plans.
Think about professional registration
Once you have achieved the necessary qualifications and workplace experience you should apply to your institution to become professionally registered. Your institution will guide you through the registration process and help you to decide when you’re ready to apply.
Read more on the Engineering Council website.
As you prepare to enter the world of work, it’s critical to align your skills and experience with the needs of the businesses which will look to employ you. Many employers made it plain that undergraduates achieving professional registration as an Engineering Technician (EngTech) and / or ICT Technician (ICTTech) on completion of their year in industry will have a distinct advantage when it comes to finding employment upon graduation.
Read more about the technician professional registration for students on The Institute of Engineering and Technology website.
Share your experience with fellow students
Share your thoughts and experience with your Career Services and fellow students at your university. You can also have a wider impact contacting organisms such as the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB) and their dedicated programmes such as My Placement Experience.
Read more
Any views, thoughts, and opinions expressed herein are solely that of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, policies, or position of the Engineering Professors’ Council or the Toolkit sponsors and supporters.
