Rate My Placement

Last week Oliver and myself attended the AGR (Association of Graduate Recruiters) conference in Newport for the first time. The AGR conference was a great way for us to learn more about the graduate and undergraduate recruitment industry, as well as of course, network… There were a number of interesting seminars and discussions, some of which relevant to placements and internships. We thought we would share with you some interesting facts we found, these are taken from the AGR Graduate Recruitment Survey 2008 - Summer Edition.

• There are a lot of work experience opportunities 

92.6% of AGR companies offer some form of work experience, 76.8% of which are paid. 79% of AGR companies offer work experience during a holiday, whereas 58% provide them for 12 months.

• Secure yourself a graduate job before your final year

10.7% of AGR members said they take on 80% - 100% of interns as graduates.

• You can earn some real money

The Median wage for work experience students is £302 per week, this works out at £15,704 per year. 12.5% of AGR members paid more than £400 per week, over £20,000 per year. Search our reviews by salary to see the highest paid placements.

• Learn the key work place skills during uni

55.1% of Graduate Recruiters think the key soft-skill graduates lack will be communication, so why not learn how to handle yourself in the work place before you graduate.

• If the experts think it will be useful, why not do it

80.5% of AGR members think the most effective way of improving soft skills is to complete an internship or industrial placement.

For more information on the benefits of placements and internships, see our students pages or to see what students have written about their experiences click on our best quotes page.

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Much has been written recently about the differences between Generation X and Generation Y, but a recent panel held at the London Business School entitled ‘Kids Today, Leaders Tomorrow’ identified growing changes in what Generation Y (people born after 1981) want out of their career.

Students currently embarking upon undergraduate and graduate employment are seeking a strong work-life balance, a personalized workplace, and a happy, varied and motivating career. Over 50% of the panel said they would consider taking a low paid job that they love and many expressed an interest to travel, experience different aspects of life, and have a fulfilling career – ahead of financial rewards.

Does the uncertainty in the economy change student’s outlook on their career choices? Are you concerned about financial security and a stable career, or are you seeking variety and work life balance first and foremost? Is it realistic to expect this career ideal or should Generation Y accept that they can’t have it all and sooner or later they are going to have to put the hard graft in?! We would be interested to hear you thoughts – please feel free to add a comment or vote on our poll!

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The information you have all been waiting for… An overview of our Tour of the North.

Universities visited - 8
Meetings - 9
Total Miles - 602
Petrol Costs - £114.18
Hours in Car - 13hrs 50 minutes
Bread based food - 6 Egg Mayo sandwiches, 2 x 14″ Pizzas, 2 x 9″ Pizzas, 1 x Garlic Bread, 6 slices of Toast.

Some top touring…

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After our cup of tea at LJMU earlier, we drove North up the M6 and were treated to Mocha’s and Latte’s in the Hub Café at Lancaster University.

We had another really positive meeting with the placements manager and the Director of Undergraduate Studies at Lancaster, another university we hope to work very closely with next year. We discussed some good ideas for the site including using it as a resource for students pre-uni to help them decide which university and which course to apply for whilst still at school.

With the tennis on we decided to visit the Fylde Bar for a quick cola before embarking on the long road back to our home for the evening in Warwick. We were too late for the 2008 gallon challenge, but hopefully we can (shall) plan our next visit up there to coincide with the 2009 challenge!

The RateMyPlacement rating of Lancaster Uni is as follows:

- Weather = 8 / 10 – Slightly overcast but with some sunny spells, I sound like Michael Fish….
- Grounds = 9 / 10 – Really nice campus, wide open spaces with loads of greenery.
- Beer = 8 / 10 – £1.50 in the Fylde Bar, a very acceptable price.
- Bird watching = 6 / 10 – Disappointing if we’re going to be honest, I think all the builders and diggers scared them off!
- The “pot-noodle test” = 6 / 10 - £1.05 each, a bit pricey and no deals on, it’s expensive to eat a Pot Noodle in Lancaster

- The Lancaster Uni Grand Total = 37 / 50

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We were treated to a top cup of tea from the lovely assistant Nicola, which went down very well after our trek across Liverpool to meet with both the Business & Law placement manager and the Engineering placement manager.

We discussed some great ways we can increase the number of placement reviews from LJMU students and work together for the forthcoming academic year, as well as some good new ideas for RateMyPlacement.

The RateMyPlacement rating of LJMU is as follows:

- Weather = 6 / 10 – The bright sunshine faded but a trip to Liverpool without even a spot of rain was a first for me.
- Grounds = 9 / 10 – Even more central, but definitely not a campus.
- Beer = 6 / 10 – £1.90 for a Fosters in the Union, that’s quite an expensive night..
- Bird watching = 6 / 10 – Sadly there was no graduation day and an even greater abundance of the Liverpool fake tan in the centre…!
- The “pot-noodle test” = 5 / 10 - £1.09 clearly prefer their super-noodles

- The Liverpool Uni Grand Total = 33 / 50  

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Liverpool Uni has a large and well equipped careers department and it was great to chat through ways we can work more closely. Hopefully we can work closely with them as they aim to raise the profile of work placements to their undergraduates.

The RateMyPlacement rating of Liverpool Uni is as follows:

- Weather = 7 / 10 – Started off quite nice in Liverpool, became overcast towards the middle of the day

- Grounds = 8 / 10 – Great central location, pretty impressive Library too.
- Beer = 0 / 10 - Unfortunately the Guild was closed and the prices are under review, we have been reliably informed it is around £1.80.
- Bird watching = 9 / 10 – Graduation day was a good day to arrive on
- The “pot-noodle test” = 0 / 10 – Again, the Guild being closed ruined all our fun.

- The Liverpool Uni Grand Total = 24 / 50 (the closed Guild hasn’t done Liverpool justice with this rating)

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We decided to take advantage of the weather in Huddersfield so stopped for lunch at The Old Mill en route to Manchester. Couple of baguettes and some high class onion rings in the sun by the River Calder sorted us out nicely.

Our meeting at MMU wasn’t til half 3 so we had an hour to kill in Manchester so we lapped up the culture visiting China Town and then the Art Gallery (see photo)!

Another really positive meeting ended with a couple of beers with the Business School placement officer. She went for a Lebanese meal while we went to a mates house with some cans and pizza’s – clearly had enough culture for the day!

The RateMyPlacement rating of MMU is as follows:

- Weather = 10 / 10 – Red hot sunshiiiiiiine in Manchester…
- Grounds = 7 / 10 – Not a lot of greenery, but right in the middle of the city, perfect for the RateMyPlacement culture vultures…
- Beer = 6 / 10 – £3.20 / pint, rather expensive down Canal Street but there were some very friendly blokes, for some reason they kept on smiling at me…
- Bird watching = 7 / 10 – Some good standards amongst the city pigeons
- The “pot-noodle test” = 0 /10 – The MMU union shop is closed for the summer, students will have to wait a while for their Pot Noodle fix, or go to Tesco.

- The MMU Grand Total = 30 / 50

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An early start from Leeds but a relatively painless journey to Huddersfield, apart from a £53.24 petrol stop. We had a double reason to be in Huddersfield as we had arranged 2 meetings with the placement officers from the Business School and the department of Computing and Engineering.

We were pleasantly surprised by what we saw, the sun was shining, the university buildings were impressively kitted out, and there were some top tramps getting stuck into the cider at 9.15am.

The RateMyPlacement rating on the University of Huddersfield:

- Weather – 10 / 10 –absolute scorcher, plus we found a great pub by the Canal for lunch.
- Grounds – 8/ 10 – Lovely old stone buildings, refurbished inside and overlooking the canal, only drawback was a lack of grass to enjoy the sun.
- Beer – 8 / 10 – £1.90 / pint
- Bird Watching – 6 / 10 – Not the season for ornithology, as most had migrated elsewhere, the closest we came to wildlife was some cows (of the 4 legged variety) next to the A62.
- The pot noodle test – 10 / 10 - £1.20 for 2 - these Northerners seem to love pot noodles.

The University of Huddersfield grand total: 42/50

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Next stop was a two mile drive out of the city centre to the Headingley Campus of Leeds Met, we made slow progress but for a change, we weren’t late. En route the clouds disappeared and the sun shone even brighter as we returned to the location of our first university meeting around 13 months ago.

As we’ve met with Leeds Met before it was much more of an update and a chat rather than a meeting, but again really useful, and they make a delightful cup of tea…

The RateMyPlacement rating on the Leeds Met University:

- Weather – 9 / 10 – sunnier than central Leeds!
- Grounds – 9 / 10 – really impressive buildings with lots of green space marred only by the huge marquee erected for graduation
- Beer – 8 / 10 – £1.85 / pint
- Bird Watching – 8 / 10 – Headingley Campus was very quiet but their was a flock of lovely specimens along the Otley Road which made up for it
- The pot noodle test – 10 / 10 - £1.20 for 2… top standards in Leeds.

- Leeds Met University grand score 44/50.

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