Insight programmes for first year work experience University of Manchester Careers Blog

Insight programmes for first year work experience University of Manchester Careers Blog If you are a first year student why not consider getting ahead and starting developing your skills, experience and contacts with employers now? There are still opportunities from the start of your studies which will help you for your career and build experience on your CV. Is there any available work experience with corporate companies? A number of companies offer insight programmes or open days where you can find out more about their opportunities and make a good impression. They often happen during the spring or Easter holidays and sometimes during the winter vacation. Some insight programmes are already being advertised on company websites and also on CareersLink, which you can login as a current student to check opportunities. Traditionally this type of opportunity is more popular with the areas of Finance and Law, however, there are a range of other insight programmes on offer including opportunities within sectors such as IT, Engineering, or charity based organisations to name a few. For more details on companies with possible insight programmes see information on our website about First Year Spring Internships. Some popular schemes can include with employers such as: Barclays PwC Talent Academy RBS Morgan Stanley Bank of America/ Merrill Lynch Proctor Gamble IBM Consultancy Hogan Lovells Enterprise-Rent-a-car Unilever Barnardo’s What if there isn’t an insight day within the area I’m interested in? If you can’t see anything being advertised immediately then you may want to consider researching your area of interest to find companies to find out if they will advertise later, or approach them with a speculative application for gaining work experience. Our CV, Cover Letter and Application Form guides have information on making a speculative application and our staff in the Careers Service may be able to give you further help to support you in this. You may also want to consider developing your Networking skills to establish and explore possible industry contacts within your area of interest. Look at our Networking information on our website Read our  Getting Connected  guide Check on CareersLink for events with Employers in the near future including information and networking events, which will give you ways to make contact with companies. Think about what contacts with people you already may have that could be useful to network with and ask about possible work experience opportunities What other opportunities are available to me to gain work experience? It is good to remember that you can gain valuable skills through both your studies and extra-curricular activities that could be relevant to a job you want to apply to in future. Be proactive and make the most of your time at university. Consider developing skills that you need for the roles you want to apply to through other opportunities including part time work, volunteering, taking a leading role as a member of student society in the Student’s Union or through maybe a hobby or other interest. Only First Years Allowed Information event on 27th November There is also an information session especially for first year students of University of Manchester to support you in getting work experience. Check out the full details of where, when and how to register for the event through logging in on CareersLink. Check out further information on our website with Work Experience for First Years and also a further blog on with helpful advice on First Year internships and work experience. All Undergraduate Undergraduate-highlighted First year students networking work experience