Want to see our new BETA site? - Click Here >>
Your thoughts and feedback would be great - newsite@gapyear.com
Your thoughts and feedback would be great - newsite@gapyear.com
Guide to getting work experience on your gap year Elizabeth Clark writesGapper Elizabeth runs us through the hows, whys and wherefores of getting some invaluable work experience during your gap year. This one is much more media specific, but the general rules can easily be applied to getting work experience in any industry. "A work experience gap year is when you take a year out or time off in order to gain relevant experience within a profession. Whether this be journalism, veterinary, medical or whatever. A great CV booster and a perfect opportunity to get a unique insight into the career you picture yourself in, getting work experience is officially one of the fastest-growing sectors of the gap year industry. Why get work experience on your gap year? Work experience is practically the only way to get your foot even slightly in the door of cut-throat professions, such as journalism. These industries are all about contacts and networking, so why not get a head start over your peers by making the connections three years before they do? It shows future employers how serious you are about your careers and your ability to forward plan demonstrates how organised you are. It will also give you a chance to test the waters, see if this really is the job you want to have. If it’s confirmed that this really is your ambition then great; if you end up wondering what the heck you were thinking, it saves you wasting a lot of time when it really counts. Who do work experience gap years apply to? Quite simply, everyone. You don’t necessarily have to take a work experience gap year the year before you go to university. Perhaps you’re a university leaver finding that even after slogging it out at the student newspaper you still want more experience. Whatever your situation work experience is nearly always a good idea. How do I go about it?There are a five key steps...  1) Sign up with an agencyThere isn’t going to be a continuous stream of work experience placements throughout your whole year, so when you are offered a week or two, you’ll probably have to take the dates suggested. Any job you have in the mean-time will have to be flexible. Agency work is great as you more or less dictate when you can and can’t work. The type of clerical work it will more than likely involve is boring as hell, but the pay tends to be better than more interesting than retail or bar work. The great thing about having a work experience gap year is that you’ll be available at the off-peak times of year, making it easier to secure a temp job than during the holidays when everyone returns from uni clamouring for places. 2) Get prepared Make a list of everywhere you want to apply, the more the better as the odds of getting placements will increase. Be sure to write, as opposed to email as the personal touch can go a long way. Also, try to get in there early with your letter. You know the early bird caught don't you? 3) Hit the right contacts Find out exactly who to address your letter to. Never write to an anonymous ‘Sir/Madam’ because your application, however good in every other way, will get chucked in the bin without a second thought. If you couldn’t even be bothered to find out the name and title of the relevant person in the company, it doesn’t say much for your initiative. If you get the contact details from a third party, be sure you check them out yourself. 4) Keep it professional When putting together your application, think about the person who has to plough through that tedious pile of begging letters from young nobodies like yourself. Make your proposal stand out. A letter by itself won’t really cut it - put together a folder. Make it look professional (even if you don’t feel like much of a high-flyer at this stage) with a front page and a couple of references. You don’t need to go crazy and spend a fortune on plush folders - remember they’ve got to go through the post as well. And don’t produce reams and reams of stuff about how great you are - too many pages will work against you, just as too few will. Contact with people via email should be treated like formal letters unless they approach it all very casually themselves. Sloppy grammar and spelling will show you up and woe betide you if you fall into txt spk. If in doubt always verge on the formal side - although we live in the days of dress-down Fridays a nice 'Yours sincerely' is always appreciated.  5) Persistence, persistence, persistence...If you haven’t heard from the company of your dreams after three or four weeks, it’s worth ringing them and politely checking whether they received your application. A phone call won't hurt and it will only emphasise how keen you are to work for the company. Also, when companies send back that standard three-line letter of refusal, write back if there’s the slightest opening to do so. This means they will then got more than one of your letters on file for future reference. It also makes you look extra polite and keen! Five things to remember...1) Presentation Firstly, be sure to get there on time! I tmakes all the difference and apart from it being professional, you’re saved all those panicky palpitations and sweaty armpits one gets when running late.  Dress the part. Unless you’ve been specifically told that the dress code is ‘smart casual’ go for smart. Three piece suits will not really be expected from you, but by making an effort, the worst you would do is show up all those old-hands who’ve become just as scruffy as they have jaded. Be confident but not in that cocky, annoying way that some adopt, giving all young people a bad name. Having confidence in your own abilities (or at least your potential) is different from bubbling into an office with an air of knowing it all. Always remember that they are doing you a favour by having you there, not the other way round. Oh, and always take a notebook and pen. 2) Make yourself useful When you’ve finished on one task, let them know you’re ready for more work. Don’t bug them constantly but appear keen and ready to get on with anything that needs doing. 3) Have ideas but know when to shut up This all depends on how you put your ideas across. Always remember that the office ran itself perfectly well before you arrived. But if you do have a genuine suggestion, don’t shirk from presenting it. As long as it’s well thought out, your colleagues-for-the-week will be glad to hear it. This doesn’t necessarily mean it will come off, but your effort and enthusiasm will be noted. 4) Be independent Nobody in any office or work environment is going to want to feel that they have to babysit you all week or fortnight. Asking for help is fine, but if come Thursday, if you still can’t remember the code to the front door or your computer password, it’s a bit of a poor show. Write stuff like this down to save looking incompetent.  5) Put yourself about and don’t turn down any opportunitiesThis is relevant in all fields, but particularly if you want to break into journalism Writing opportunities are not just available from getting work experience with papers - there are loads of ways to scrounge the odd 500 words here and there. Just keep your eyes open for relevant opportunities. In short, by completing as many work experience placements as you can squeeze into your gap year, you'll be able to get a good feel for your chosen profession, develop your lists of foot-in-the-door contacts whilst increasing your confidence and skills. Not bad for a couple of weeks work here and there. You never know, some of them might even pay you for it..."  Click here >> for our Jobs zone - includes work experience vacancies Click here >> for more advice guides Click here >> for the gapyear.com placements database - get work experience overseas! |
Jobs Adverts |
© Copyright 1998-2007 - The Gapyear Company Ltd - Company Registration No: 3597000
