EMPLOYABILITY & CAREERS

World of Work – Work Experience

Completing a work experience placement will ensure that you are able to finish your course with the skills, knowledge and expertise that employers are actively seeking in the working world.

Work experience gives you the valuable opportunity to put your college learning into practice and increase your employability awareness and develop skills in your chosen industry.

What will I gain from work experience?

Gain a deeper knowledge of your chosen industry and understand how the industry works

Build and develop new skills and increase your confidence

Improved job opportunities – having experience of work will give you something to talk about on job applications and in interviews

Gain valuable experience to guide your future career decision making

Build your professional networks and create strong working connections

Become more independent

How does it work?

1. At the start of term the Work Experience team will attend tutorials to let you know when you are scheduled to complete your work experience.

This might be for a block week, or an extended placement of 1 to 2 days per week over several weeks

2.

The Work Placement Officers will work with you and your tutors to match you to a suitable high quality placement, and will support you before, during and after your placement.

3.

You can keep track of your placement from start to finish using an online system called Navigate. This will help you prepare for your placement, allowing you to set goals, track your hours and monitor your progress.

4. On Navigate you are able to keep a record of your achievements and developments, which can be downloaded and used as an online CV.

5.

After your placement has been completed you will reflect on your experience, and will receive feedback from the employer which you can use as a reference for future work.

Want to know more?

Contact us on workplacements@croydon.ac.uk or drop into the World of Work office.

Careers Advice

The Careers team is here to provide you with impartial advice and guidance to support your aspirations, explore the opportunities that are available to you, and help you plan your next steps after you complete your course.

Our aim is to help you assess your own skills, values and interests, and match these into a Career Plan.

The Careers service is delivered by qualified Careers Advisors who adhere to the professional standards set out in the Career Development Institute (CDI) Code of Ethics.

The Careers team is available to provide you with support in:

Identifying your next steps Applying to university Apprenticeships CV writing Volunteering Job applications Interview skills Mock interviews And more!

The Careers team run regular drop in advice sessions. Details of drop in sessions will be published on Moodle, or you can get in touch with the team using the links below.

Thinking about Higher Education?

If you’re considering applying to university, or considering whether Higher Education is right for you, there is plenty of support available from the Careers team who will be running a series of workshops and events throughout the year including:

What is Higher Education? Tips on how to make a successful application Personal statement 1:1 support Interview preparation support Preparing for Higher Education

Get in touch!

To find out more, or to book an appointment with a Careers Advisor, just pop into Student Services or drop us an email, and one of the team will be happy to help.

Croydon campus students: email careers@croydon.ac.uk

Coulsdon campus students: email careers@coulsdon.ac.uk

SUPPORTING YOUR ASPIRATIONS