PREPARING FOR YOUR
INTERNSHIP APPLICATION
HELPING YOU SUCCEED
KATH HOUSTON
WHAT THIS IS FOR
To help you decide whether a UCLAN internship is right for
you (12 weeks, 6 month or 12 month internships with UCLAN
or external employers (12 to 48 weeks) – full time or part time
hours)
To help you be ready to make a good application
To help you be focused on your future career.
WHAT IS A UCLAN
GRADUATE INTERNSHIP?
What is an internship?
A specific project or defined activity, which provides a
developmental opportunity for UCLan graduates.
What is the purpose of internships?
The purpose of internships is to enhance the employability of
the intern by provision of meaningful work experience, whist
contributing to school/service activity. The project aims to
give graduates who might not necessarily have relevant work
experience the opportunity to gain the skills and experience
needed to progress onto graduate level roles elsewhere.
WHAT GRADUATE
RECRUITERS SAY
"Students who just focus on their degree studies without
spending time in the workplace are unlikely to develop the
skills and interests that graduate employers are looking for.’
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22875717
So what if your work experience has been limited?
Just a paper round?
Lack of work experience – Catch 22
A chance to make up the gap – an internship.
WHY GRADUATES MIGHT
BENEFIT FROM AN
INTERNSHIP
Can you guess?
350,000 graduates (2014)
Graduate employers expect a lot.
Work experience (relevant work experience) has been found
to be the most convincing factor in persuading an employer
to select a graduate.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR
YOU?
The UCLAN internship
programmes – past successes
A chance to take stock, horizon
scan, build skills set and
confidence, be work ready.
A chance to plan your future
career based on your values,
interests, skills, knowledge and
personal qualities
THE INTERNSHIP
PACKAGE
CAREER
WORKSHOPS
PAID WORK
MENTORING
Possible
PG CERT Project
Management
WHAT DO YOU WANT/ NEED
FROM THE INTERNSHIP?
You may have your own reasons.
An ‘in the meanwhile’ experience
Earn some money
Develop skills and credibility
Something else?
DEFINITIONS OF
CAREER
Career = Working lifetime
Finding the right
direction
Are you just ‘careering along’ ?
Or just putting of the decision?
FACTS
– one in five unhappy in career
– 11% get where they want in
terms of career aspirations
8
– Career happiness is the biggest
contributor to life happiness, it
seems (no surprise)
CAREER MANAGEMENT
‘This is a world in which people had better be doing
whatever they do best, whatever they are really
motivated to do, whatever most suits them
temperamentally and whatever makes best use of
such assets as they happen to have.’
Bridges, W Creating You and Co 1998:28
PLAYING YOUR CARDS,
PLAYING TO STRENGTHS
‘Good careers are not the result of being dealt with
terrific cards – only of playing well with whatever cards
you are dealt.’
Bridges, W Creating You and Co 1998
So what are the cards in your hand?
WHAT CAN YOU OFFER?
(CARDS IN YOUR HAND)
Your ideas
Try and see it from the employer’s viewpoint.
NEXT - a VALUES check.
WHAT’S IMPORTANT TO YOU
ABOUT YOUR CAREER?
Recruiters refer to these as VALUES.
What do you VALUE that your career must give you?
Think of 5 VALUES.
Put them in order of importance.
VALUES OR CAREER
DRIVERS(KUMAR)
Pick your top 3
Status
Responsibility
Autonomy
Advancement
Economic
reward
Social
interaction
Variety
Work
environment
Security
Work/life
balance
Creativity
Service
DATA EXERCISE
(BRIDGES, W ‘JOBSHIFT’)
D – Desire
What do you really want to be doing in your work hours?
(Dream)
A – Abilities/Attributes
What are your strongest abilities? (List them)
T – Temperament
What are your natural personality qualities?
A – Assets
What is unique about you? What is your USP?
DATA MODEL (BRIDGES) – A
USEFUL PREPARATION FOR
APPLICATIONS
Doing this is a good way to collect some useful data about
yourself which can be used on an application form for an
internship and should be contained in your CV.
WHAT WILL MAKE THEM
SHORTLIST YOUR
APPLICATION?
Your ideas
You will need to show that you match the DESIRABLE and
ESSENTIAL criteria (PERSON SPEC)
You will need to show ENTHUSIASM, EMPLOYABILITY and
EVIDENCE of your suitability
You will need to write a PERSONAL STATEMENT section that
shows line by line how you match the PERSON SPEC.
NEXT WEBINAR
We will help you to be brilliant.
Book for the next webinar –
Applying for the UCLAN internship.
www.uclan.ac.uk/gradjobs2014
How to complete a internship application so you get yourself
shortlisted – see the recording on the website.
Application deadline 26 October 2014