Placement Year/Gap Year Advice Needed!

maniac886

First of all, thanks for reading this.

Basically I have been looking for a placement for the last 6/7 months for the year of study of 2006/2007. Even though I have applied to a fair few places and been to several interviews I have had no luck whatsoever as yet. I am going to keep looking until my deadline of 21st September.

One of the reasons I would like a placement is so that when i return to my third year of study I do not have to have a part time job and so can concentrate on my dissertation...etc. I know if i return to the third year now I will have to keep my job and it will get in the way of my studies as I found it very difficult in my second year!A placement has other benefits as well, it will differentiate me from other students when I complete my final year and a 20 credit module deduction in my final year.


OK here is my dilemma. If I dont get my placement I have been seriously considering taking a year out from uni and getting a full time job myself, which is relevant to my degree. The reasons behind this are;
1. The job will give me the opportunity to pay my way through University for my final year as I do not want to take a loan out.
2. I spoke to my head of school and they will 100% guarantee my place for when i return in 2007/2008 so I have nothing to lose.
3. No tuition fees to pay for this year out.
4. If i can get a job relevant to my course(IT based) then it will look better on my CV than just doing the straight 3 years.

I will of course still look for placements up until the deadline but I was just wondering what you guys thought of the second option? My Head of School has said it has been done many a time before when the student cannot obtain a placement.

Any thoughts welcome, thanks in advance!

Sillychuckie

I'd advise you do number 2, even if you find a placement.
What I did last year:
- Found a placement.
- Started working...
- Got a letter from uni demanding half tuition fees (didn't pay it).
- Got uni loan payment (albeit a lower amount, for a placement year).
- Asked employer whether they cared if I was officially a student. They said no.
- Told uni I was dropping out for a year. They said OK and guaranteed place on return.
- Got a slight pay increase and a better job title.
- Left after the year at work and returned to uni. All with a better CV (gap year in industry looks better than a placement, especially if you found it yourself). Final year at uni was a breeze because of what I had learned at work.
- Final year project was just stuff I had done at work (so, that was a piece of !!!!!! too).
- First class honours degree, immediate grad job... wham bam thank you mam.

Doesn't work out for everyone, but I dont see any benefit officially being a student during that time.
YOu have to pay the uni, and write stupid reports. My degree certificate looks no different.

Ian85

Sounds a good idea for the 4 reasons you've listed.

I've just finished my placement/year out - my course was just a straight 3 year one with the option of doing a placement/years work between years 2 and 3. I found the placement myself and basically just filled a form out at the uni saying I was taking a year out to work and would start my third year a year later.

There were no fees to pay and no uni work to do whilst on the placement (unlike some students from other univeristies who were doing the same placement). Only thing was, I was not able to get the student loan for the placement year - although this won't really matter if your on a decent salary.

Just make sure you can get a job in a relevent area to your course though.

You could still take the loan out in your final year and invest it in a savings account which will pay a higher rate of interest than the interest you pay back on the student loan.

Sillychuckie

I already had the loan approved before I notified the uni that I wouldn't be paying their fee.
They didn't bother letting my LEA know, so I just got the money paid as usual.
Salary was fine, but with such a low rate on the loan, every little helps (even if you just stick it into savings).
The placement does obviously have to be optional, and I wouldn't have done it had the uni helped me find it.

maniac886

I will be getting the job and if the pay is ok I would really love to use some of my wage to pay back the student loan i obtained in the first year.

Just on a side note, if i am not getting a placement through uni and just a normal job relevant to my course, where is the best place to look? Job centres,recruitment agencies ...?

Ian85

You could try them, but also I would look at some companies relevant to your degree in the the Yellow Pages and write some speculative letters regarding a years employment. The worst they can do is say 'we haven't any jobs at the moment'.

Good luck.

Edit: Rather than paying the loan back, why not invest the money instead and pay it back after uni. If you manage to get a decent account you could earn more interest than you'd pay back - probably not a lot, but every little helps.

maniac886

What sort of pay should I be looking for? I live in manchester but I am not sure about what I should accept!

maniac886

bump...anyone?

Sillychuckie

My placement was at a large company, very famous for developing mobile phones (and much more). I was based in Nottingham, and got £13,500.
My fellow students also got placement wages of betweeen 10k and 15k.
I wouldnt let it concern you... think of the future.
If it helps you get 30k+ come graduation, its worth it.

maniac886

Im just wondering... as i am applying later will i now find it harder to get a job/placement...hmmm

Old_el_Paso_2

Hi

I’ve been trying to help my friend get a placement, which he’s just got offered one, and came across this post while searching google. I came across a site that has lots of info on placement years:

http://www.placementyear.co.uk/

Reading through their advice, it might be worth seeing what your uni classes as a placementyear, cos you could possibly work in a shop while continuing to apply for placements, and if you get one, then do that. I had a mate last year who worked for local restaurant and then got a placement in October sometime.

Might be worth a post on their forums and see what help you get. Also got student and graduate sites, so could post on their too, cos you might get help from someone who’s been there, or may even know of a job position in their grad company…u never know.