[00:43.26]TIM:Hi, Laura—could you spare a few minutes to talk about the work placement you did last summer?
[00:48.33]I'm thinking of doing one myself...
[00:50.50]LAURA:Hi, Tim.
[00:51.70]Sure.
[00:52.84]TIM:Didn't you do yours at an environmental services company?
[00:57.46]LAURA:That's right...
[00:58.72]It's only a very small company and they needed someone to produce a company brochure, and I wanted to get some business experience because I'm interested in a career in occupational psychology in a business environment.
[01:12.99]It was good because I had overall responsibility for the project.
[01:18.26]TIM:What kind of skills do you think you developed on the placement?
[01:22.17]I mean, apart from the ones you already had...
[01:25.23]Did you have to do all the artwork for the brochure, the layout and everything?
[01:30.49]LAURA:We hired the services of a professional photographer for that.
[01:34.36]I did have to use my IT skills to a certain extent because I cut and pasted text from marketing leaflets, but that didn't involve anything I hadn't done before.
[01:45.70]TIM:- Do you think you got any better at managing your time and prioritising things?
[01:50.77]You always used to say you had trouble with that...
[01:53.54]LAURA:Oh, definitely.
[01:54.89]There was so much pressure to meet the project deadline.
[01:58.67]- And I also got better at explaining things and asserting my opinions, because I had to have weekly consultations with the marketing manager and give him a progress report.
[02:09.77]TIM:It sounds as if you got a lot out of it then.
[02:12.75]LAURA:Absolutely.
[02:14.11]It was really worthwhile ...
[02:15.94]But you know, the company benefited too...
[02:20.60]TIM:Yes, they must have done.
[02:22.11]After all, if they’d used a professional advertising agency to produce their brochure instead of doing it in-house, presumably they'd have paid a lot more?
[02:32.53]LAURA:Oh, yes.
[02:33.78]I worked it out—- it would have been 250 per cent more.
[02:38.50]And I thought the end result was good, even though we did everything on site.
[02:43.19]The company has quite a powerful computer and I managed to borrow some scanning software from the university.
[02:50.30]The new brochure looks really professional;
[02:53.50]- it enhances the image of the company straight away.
[02:56.76]TIM:So in the long run it should help them to attract clients, and improve their sales figures?
[03:02.89]LAURA:That's the idea.
[03:04.70]Yeah.
[03:51.93]TIM:Well, all in all it sounds very positive — I think I will go ahead and apply for a placement myself.
[03:59.40]How do I go about it?
[04:01.65]LAURA:It's easy enough to do, because there's a government agency called STEP- S-T-E-P - that organises placements for students.
[04:11.42]You should start by getting their booklet with all the details—I expect you can download one from their website.
[04:17.94]TIM:Actually, they’ve got copies in the psychology department—I've seen them there, I'll just go to the office and pick one up.
[04:25.98]LAURA:Right.
[04:26.74]And then if I were you, after I'd looked at it I'd go over all the options with someone...
[04:32.60]TIM:I suppose I should ask my tutor's advice.
[04:36.30]He knows more about me than anyone.
[04:38.38]LAURA: One of the career officers would be better, they've got more knowledge about the jobs market than your personal tutor would have.
[04:45.63]TIM:OK...
[04:46.73]LAURA:And then when you know what you want you can register with STEP—you'll find their address in the booklet.
[04:53.51]And once you've registered they assign you to a mentor who looks after your application.
[04:58.72]TIM:And then I suppose you just sit back and wait till you hear something?
[05:03.54]LAURA:They told me at the careers office that it's best to be proactive, and get updates yourself by checking the website for new placement alerts.
[05:12.51]Your mentor is supposed to keep you informed, but you can't rely on that.
[05:17.25]TIM:I don't suppose it's a good idea to get in touch with companies directly, is it?
[05:23.29]LAURA:Not really...
[05:24.59] But it is the company who notifies you if they want you to go for an interview.
[05:29.11]You get a letter of invitation or an email from personnel departments.
[05:34.14]TIM:And do I reply directly to them?
[05:36.23]LAURA:Yes, you do.
[05:37.85]STEP only gets involved again once you've been made a job offer.
[05:41.29]TIM:Right...
[05:42.86] So, once you've had an interview you should let your mentor know what the outcome is?
[05:48.23]I mean whether you're offered a job, and whether you've decided to accept it?
[05:53.43]LAURA:That’s right.
[05:54.62]They'll inform the careers office once a placement has been agreed, so you don't have to do that.
[06:00.38]TIM:Is that all then?
[06:02.69]LAURA:More or less.
[06:04.25]Only once you’ve accepted an offer you'll probably have to supply a reference, because the placement will be conditional on that.
[06:11.91] And that's something you should ask your own tutor to provide.
[06:15.42]He knows about your academic ability and also about your qualities, like reliability.
[06:21.50]TIM:Well, thanks very much for the information—I'm starting to look forward...
