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Boost your business with an ABS student placement
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“I think it is evident that we have had good experiences with placement students as two of them are now in permanent employment with CNR. We have been very lucky with our students from RGU, they have all been committed, hard working and have become respected members of the team whilst on placement.� Rebecca Gayler CNR International
A win/win opportunity for students and employers At Aberdeen Business School (ABS) we’re passionate about placements. For our students, it’s an invaluable chance to gain real life experience in their chosen area of study. And for local employers, it’s a fantastic opportunity to get intelligent, motivated, enthusiastic, affordable and bright students in to share their skills and knowledge. Why take on a placement student? Robert Gordon University is consistently ranked as one of the top 5 UK universities for graduate employment. This accolade reflects the fact that our courses focus on preparing students for the world of work. At ABS we work closely with employers to offer courses that ensure our graduates are brimming with relevant, valuable skills and fresh ideas, and are ready and able to make a genuine contribution to your organisation. Key to this is the fact that today most of our full-time courses include a work placement lasting from four weeks to 48 weeks – and they provide a win-win opportunity for both student and employer alike.
• Students can help overcome any temporary staff shortages at low cost, or look after projects that would take up valuable time from full-time employees. • Your existing staff will benefit from the latest research currently taught in higher education institutions. • Your existing staff will gain the opportunity to develop supervisory skills, by mentoring the placement student. • It’s a reliable and cost effective way of recruiting. Over half of our students who completed a business or accounting placement have been offered a full-time job on graduating or a part-time job during their final academic year. • It provides a great PR opportunity within your industry peer group and amongst your clients.
How our placements work
Interested? Here’s what we need from you
There are a number of ways you can take an ABS student on placement – you choose how you want to utilise them to best suit your business.
Over the past few years, Robert Gordon University (RGU) has been rated in the top 5 for graduate recruitment in the whole of the UK.
• Floating Roles Many companies offer students a chance to experience a variety of roles in a number of different departments, as well as shadowing senior management.
That is something we’re very proud of at ABS, and most of our full-time courses now incorporate a work placement lasting from four weeks to 48 weeks, with the popularity of placements amongst students growing every year.
• Rolling Placement A lot of the businesses we work with employ students on year-long placements, on a rolling basis. That way they benefit from having a permanent position filled with keen, enthusiastic students with new skills and ideas every single year. • Year Long Vacancies Student placements are an easy-toarrange, cost effective way to cover positions that need filled due to a long term sabbatical or maternity leave. • Expansion and Growth Students are able to fill gaps in staffing levels due to company growth, whether seasonal, temporary or long term. • Project Based Placements Some of our Postgraduate courses require students to research projects while on placement. In these cases, as well as developing their skills and industry knowledge, students research a particular area, agreed between you and them. Students then return to University to finalise their research and write up findings, which are forwarded on to you for comment and potential use in your business.
All our placements are academically assessed, and in order for them to adhere to our academic criteria, we ask the following of all our employer partners: • The placement is relevant to the student’s course, and provides a challenge that allows them to relate the real world of work to their studies. • You agree on a learning contract with the student at the start of placement. This allows you to set specific tasks and objectives for the duration of the placement. • You undertake regular reviews with the students resulting in a final review where we ask you to give the student a grade for their placement (a grading scale is provided). • You cover relevant health and safety processes and procedures with the student before they begin placement.
“We are a small business. Our student was required to do absolutely everything connected with business development including making the tea, going to high level meetings and making decisions that had implications for cash flow and bottom line. He rose to the challenge. We benefited greatly from his enthusiasm and energy and he benefited from the breadth of experience we could offer.� Dr Harriet Mowat Managing Director Mowat Research Ltd
What’s next?
The Placement Office
Aberdeen Business School provides a unique opportunity for companies like yours to employ high calibre individuals at a relatively low cost.
Our Placement Office provides an unrivalled level of service in helping you find the right students for your business and guiding you through the placement process.
An amazing 70% of employers return year after year to offer placement opportunities, showing the quality of our students and the quality of the work they produce.
Cost Placements over 12 weeks are paid and although it is up to you and the student to negotiate rate of pay, our Placement Office issues a guide of £6 – £7.50/hour or £11,000 – £16,000/year. As an employee of your company the student is covered by your insurance policies and as such is required to adhere to all policies and procedures in place within the company.
We will discuss the student’s potential role within your organisation and ask you to submit a job description. We’ll then send you a selection of CVs from suitable candidates for you to interview. Interviews can be organised on your behalf if required. If you are interested in offering a placement to one or more of our students, please contact the Placement Office at Aberdeen Business School.
Placement Office Aberdeen Business School Robert Gordon University Garthdee Road Aberdeen AB10 7QE Call us on 01224 263837 Email us on ABSPlacements@rgu.ac.uk Visit us at www.rgu.ac.uk/absplacements
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