Industrial placement Year

[quintessentially166]

When DS applied to Uni the idea of a placement year sounded a good option, however, naively I thought the Uni had a list of placements and you picked an option, have a basic interview to check you were right fit…but no, it is literally like applying for a full time job, having to source the placement yourself and with up to 4 rounds of interviews and that is only if you get passed just submitting your CV.

What is your DS/DD experiences of trying to get a placement like? Did they manage to find something or did they just have to go on and complete their final year without a placement year?

@OhDear111he's applying for placements now - business generally for now. I just hope he gets a chance

@OhDear111tbh, I think your husband's company sounds like an outlier - most firms, regardless of sector, want to determine how their prospective employees communicate and what their soft skills are like. There's more to most careers and professions than just primary problem solving in a person's core domain.

Oh, and if you're going to change your username, you really need to change your tone and reduce your excessive use of exclamation marks. Most of us know who you are Tizer.

@cyclingmum67 They really don’t care that much. They would take a competent engineer any day of the week over someone with work expertise in Tesco who was not as good technically. The reason is that competent delivery of design in the timeframe allowed is vital and ability to progress as an engineer. Over 40 years, the engineers who are competent and develop into chartered engineers can often be good enough at the people skills. Not being good enough at engineering is a big fat fail and your social skills won’t help you. Most grads can team work as they do this on engineering degrees.

The problems to be solved are complex Engimeering problems. They need engineering solutions. Most bright grads cope with the people skills when required to as they become more senior. Some won’t ever meet clients, others relish that side of the work.

Interestingly, DS1 has had two interviews this week for a Mchem placement year. In both they spent half the time quizzing him about his unrelated pt job of four years and three years experience as a junior football referee!
Whether he gets the job is another matter.

Really interesting to read this thread. DS is about to apply to do a Comp Sci degree at Uni and I was concerned that his favourite Uni’s don’t offer a placement year. I’ve read that it really helps with job opportunities to do a placement year but that’s only if you can get one! Maybe he’d be better off doing a masters.

Even if uni doesn't offer a placement year degree, they probably let you intermit/suspend studies for a year (DD did that). They were good in that she remained a student so no council tax and could access library etc. Also offered her academic writing etc refreshers on return. She writes plus placement year after her degree on CV.

@Loveandhappiness The issue is - it helps some! They sing about it - of course they do! What no one ever says is how many get one. DH employed engineers. Most from the high ranking universities did not do a placement year. They all did undergrad masters. MEng. So that’s what I would do snd also understand computer science is an area where there’s less jobs than grads. I personally think engineering has way more options for employment streams. Maths and physics required.

Calling all engineers.

A Placement year is an expensive waste of time because @OhDear111 says so. Her husband used to run an engineering business, so she knows best.

@Charlotte120221 Just to put you right. They were (are) mid sized consulting engineers with well over 100 staff and 40 years expertise and experience. Highly successful. You can scoff all you like but you come across as childish. What employment knowledge do you have? Have you personally employed grad engineers in your own company? Chartered engineers? Do you understand the process? Have you run a business with many professionally qualified engineers designing and advising on important infrastructure projects? DH is FICE and FIStructE and FIHE and still does expert witness work - so of course knows nothing at all. You are what? Exactly? A mum or a troll? Or just ignorant?

@OhDear111 I am just someone who doesn't share your view but every time anyone posts on here in favour of placement years you shoot them down in flames.

There are hundreds (if not thousands) of kids doing placements, and they can be useful for lots of reasons.

I don't care what your husband's qualifications are, they don't make you the resident expert on placements.

@Charlotte120221 I’m well aware they can work for some dc. They need a warning if dc are giving up a MEng to do a placement though. It’s not as if there aren’t consequences. There’s also time consequences with applications. Suits some and is very onerous for others. I’m not against them as such but many seem to think they lead to the best jobs and this isn’t the case. Plenty of dc don’t even stick to the career intended. They can be good for the student who knows what they want and isn’t looking anywhere better. Other universities don’t have placements and I guess their grads don’t need them. It’s just not black and white.

But you are against them! Every argument for them you just bat away.

That's not to say that every undergraduate should do one, but if it's there and you get one then it can be valuable - as all the other posters have said.

I'm not sure why you think kids are giving up an MEng for a placement. It's very clear to students that the Masters is required for accreditation and so kids motivated to do a placement year will be motivated to do the Masters.

I don't get why we're even discussing Engineering, and Masters vs Bachelors on this thread. The thread was never about this - it was a general, subject agnostic question/discussion about placements

DD1 is on a placement year and loving it. She is decently paid and getting lots of experience. She's hoping the company will eventually employ her on their graduate programme, they mainly take placement year students onto their graduate programme. She was laser focused in applying for the placement. And she was getting very high marks in her assessments in her first two years plus involved with student rep body etc. She attended all lectures, including the 'optional' workshops and tutors knew her. The subject she is doing is a real passion for her and I think the placement company spotted that drive.

Pls don't write off placement years, it can be extremely valuable. Of course they are very competitive but many get them and nearly all are offered jobs at the end of it. Even if not, they've got a year's worth of industry experience to add to their CV. Don't forget they also get paid a salary. I'm on dc no 2 now, both did placement years and were offered jobs. DS1 studied Computer Science.

Thanks Tonty. I won’t. I’d rather DS opted for a Uni course that offered them. I’m a bit surprised that some Uni’s (e.g. Cambridge, Bristol etc) that are highly rated for CS don’t offer them.

This is really quite rude. I graduated in engineering more than 40 years ago, taught it at an RG university for more than 30 years, worked in industry for a company employing hundreds if not thousands of engineers of all disciplines, instigated and ran a placement programme for my department overseeing hundreds of students on placement over the years. I recruited organisations into our programme including all the major oil companies, FMCG companies, research organisations, non profits and universities on five continents.I would guess I know many more fellows of engineering institutions than you, in academia and industry. Yet you have been as dismissive of me as everyone else on this thread.

i was going to stay out of this but I’m not putting up with you accusing others of being trolls or using “mum” as an insult.

well said @Chemenger

@OhDear111 Oh dear indeed! That was a very rude and pompous message you sent to @Charlotte120221 . Nobody knows anyone on here so beware of making assumptions based on a few posts.