Why You Should Do a Placement Year During University

Ultimately, a placement year provides you with a more rounded and versatile skill set, which has the potential for opening up doors when it comes to the job search

Firstly, what is a placement year??

I imagine that, like me, you won’t be able to escape questions about placements at university. However, in case you don’t know, a placement year involves working in an industry position for 10-12 months – which turns your degree into a ‘sandwich’ degree.?

A year in industry enhances your employability because of the experience you receive on top of your degree; all of this helps you to?Make Yourself Stand Out When You Graduate . If anything, the pandemic has made placement years even more valuable, as work experience opportunities over the past two years have been scarce.

I’m currently in the third year of my Marketing degree at De Montfort University in Leicester. This year I am on placement working as Sales and Marketing Co-ordinator at Adey Steel Group. I have been able to work independently on projects such as social media content planning/creation and brand design work, as well as part of a team on larger scale projects.

Taking a Year Out to Work!?

There are so many benefits to doing a placement (probably why it gets drilled in so much). I would say that the main benefit is the additional work experience it provides you before entering the graduate job market, which is often more valuable than qualifications considering that the number of people attending university is increasing every year.?

A placement year gives you the chance to put your degree or industry choice into practice, giving you a taster of working in the industry. Getting a taste helps you get an idea of whether you would like/dislike to work in the industry after graduating, and it can also provide direction for where you might like to specialise.

It’s Who You Know…

You’ve probably heard people saying that ‘it’s more about who you know than what you know’ in a lot of cases in the job search. A placement year provides an opportunity for?Networking ?which could help to give you the push towards securing the graduate job of your dreams. This is so important for strengthening your CV and references; ultimately, any advantage you can grab is likely to have a massive impact on how successful your applications will be... Read more on Why You Should Do a Placement Year During University