My top questions after securing a placement offer

Congratulations on receiving a Placement offer!

Firstly, I’d like to say a massive congratulations in securing an elusive placement offer. They are extremely competitive and most require jumping through quite a few hoops so well done for making it to the finish line!

If you’re anything like me though, the initial excitement wears off in a week or so though and the trepidation starts to set in!

These were my top questions when I first secured my placement and a bit of a guide as to how to put your mind at ease and have an enjoyable end to your second year:

How do I tell Uni?

Get straight in touch with the Business School Student Experience Team: nubs.placementandstudyabroad@ncl.ac.uk. They will ask for more information about the placement from you and your employer and will start the approval process. All placements must be approved by the university. The deadline for notifying the university about UK placements and placements in your home country is 31 July.

Where will I live?

Wherever your placement is located! You could be anywhere in the country depending on the company/organisation you are working for, but don’t worry if it’s somewhere new, just see it as a chance to experience being a fresher again.

Try get in touch with other people you know from university that might be moving to the same area or get in touch with the HR team for your placement and ask for the details of any other placement students – chances are they need somewhere to live too!

Personally, my placement is in Leeds and I’ll be living in a house of 10 with most of the other placement students from the company I’m working for! I’m really excited about it as we’ll all be able to commute to the offices together.

A module while still on placement??

That’s right! You are required to carry out a reflective log and keep in touch with university while still on placement, as you are still a student throughout your year away. There is also an assessment element to this with a simple pass or fail based on meeting criteria, but I’ve heard that very few fail!

Is student finance still a thing if I get paid on my placement?

Some students may be eligible for maintenance loans whilst on placement. To find out more, visit: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/student-financial-support/ As you’re still a Newcastle student and undertaking a placement module, you also still need to pay reduced tuition fees for the placement year.

What does my work contract mean?

This is a big one and something that you should take very seriously. You must read through your work contract very carefully before signing (don’t just see it as accepting the iPhone ‘terms and conditions’). Make sure you understand and agree with everything and discuss elements of it that you are unsure of with the careers team here at University especially if it is a smaller company or one that the University may not have sent students to in the past.

What will happen in my first month/week/day?

I felt apprehensive about this, but the current placement student that I will be taking over from set up a call with me to discuss what would happen and answered all my questions about getting a laptop, dress code and what I’ll be doing to begin with. I’d highly recommend setting up a similar call as soon as you can with someone similar or your future supervisor to touch base.

Most of all, see this time as a period to get excited about the year ahead, you’ll meet so many incredible people, have the chance to work in a completely different environment and maybe explore a brand-new city!

Enjoy it and good luck!

Careers