University and work can be very stressful; so here’s a few tips to get the most out of our day and get that work and revision ethic on the up!

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When a new job opens within a company and they start recruiting for it, how many CVs would you assume that they receive? According to various researches, they would somewhere close to 70 applications per position, and a lot more for bigger companies. We can all guess that recruiters do not read every single line of every page of a resume they receive. More often, recruiters spend just a few seconds before deeming whether the resume has potential or if it’s going straight in the rubbish bin.

If you do not want your CV to end up in the bin and get a chance to get to the interview stage, keep on reading to find out what to remove – as to not distract the recruiter with unimportant information and unhide your relevant qualifications and skills.

So, if you have a feeling your resume is a little off and needs a slight makeover, do not despair. Keep on reading and you will be amazed at just how easy and painless it is to clean up your CV, you have no excuses!

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You’ve done all of your research, you’re wearing your best outfit and are radiating confidence for your job interview later on today. From the opening handshake, you feel like you’re in control and think that this is going to be a piece of cake. That is until the interviewer asks one question which is rather awkward and super tricky to answer. What do you do now? How do you answer without making yourself look bad? Can all of your hard work so far be completely shattered by one bad answer?

Unfortunately, yes. It can. Interviewers like to ask such questions to throw you off balance and see how you would handle it. These questions could seem very insignificant and harmless until it’s too late and you have headed down a bad path with your answer.

So how does one answer such questions and still present themselves in a positive light while sidestepping those little traps? Not too worry though! We have you covered. Here are four common & tricky interview questions and our advice on how to handle them.

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There is no doubt we live in a modern society obsessed with social media. We spend so much time scrolling through various content on our phones, tablets or computers, rarely giving it much thought. Well, we have a better way you could use this modern obsession to your advantage. Social media is a great way to boost your job search! It can get your name out there and help you find the job you’re looking for. So stop mindlessly wasting your time on social media and use it to do something productive!

Read on for some reasons why you can social media in your job search!

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We have all experienced days in the office where you just don’t feel motivated. Anyone can have bad days and it is unrealistic to think that it won’t happen to you. Staying motivated at all times can be tough but there are a few tricks to help you out with this! According to specialists, motivation is a three part process. The first one is activation, this is making the decision to do something, which in your case is actually deciding to commence a placement. So far so good. The second step is intensity, and that is the amount of effort you are willing to put into your decision.

If you’re reading this blog then I am guessing you have already done this by looking for your placement, interviewing for different positions and working hard in order to prove yourself during your first months. The last step is perseverance; so, how long can you keep up the hard work for? Below, you can find the best tips that will help you keep up the good work and continue to improve whilst on your placement.

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Moving abroad can seem to be a fascinating yet terrifying experience but fear not, some international organisations exist to help you throughout your journey and facilitate every step you take toward the placement of your dreams.

In this article we will be checking out the most famous and recognised student organisation in the EU: Erasmus. In 5 steps, you will learn all there is to know about this incredible student program.

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It is very easy to get tricked by a scammer when you just arrived in the UK, hoping to find an accommodation fast and move in right away. Some landlords intentionally omit mentioning important problems in their ads in order to rent their accommodations, when some others don’t even have a real place to rent. Of course all owners aren’t tricksters but you need to stay vigilant to avoid an unfortunate situation.

Here are a few tips to help you avoid unfortunate situations:

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Yes, here is an official pancake day. Actually, it shouldn’t be all too surprising should it? I mean in the last few years there have been numerous dates being dedicated in the name of food – National Pizza Day, Popcorn day, Peanut butter day and so on and so on. The list is as big as the variety of foods there are out there in the world. Anyway, today we are focusing on one which has been known for a really long time – Pancake Day.

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The United Kingdom (England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland) attracts more and more students looking for an internship abroad. More and more students give up on doing an internship in Spain or Italy to move to England, whether it be to practice English or to have your first international experience. The concept is interesting but the competition is very hard.

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In the last article from this series, we covered Sofia in Bulgaria, how to get there on a budget, where to go and what to see. Our main goal is to find you the cheapest holiday getaway where you can go over the weekend to take some stress off this busy exam period or treat yourself after the completion of your exams! in this article we will be covering Vilnius in Lithuania!

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Whether you are looking for a full-time position or an internship, you must undergo the interview process where you will be interviewed (most likely) by a recruitment/HR officer to see if you are suitable for the role. This stage can be very nerve wrecking as it solely depends on you and the way you perform in the interview SO…we have put together this blog – we’ll do our best to advise you on what to say and how to act in your interview. Read more

Internships are valuable and more and more students are undertaking them.  According to Laura Noonan, from the Financial Times, the number of applications for internships from both students and graduates has globally risen by more than 40% since 2012. This is a serious competition. In this blog, we will give you some ideas on what you can do in order to enrich your CV… Read more

Becoming a team leader is not easy, it is much more than just the title as you’ll soon learn that your job happiness can rely very much on your team, on a professional and friendship level.  To become a true leader you must become part of the team and to successfully make that transition, we have come up with several points that with guide you through this process. Read more

If you are in the UK around autumn time, a few days into November you will start noticing people wearing poppy flower pins on their clothing. You can also see them being sold at almost any popular grocery store even see people selling them on the streets. Well that is probably because Remembrance Day is around the corner. Read more

The first day at your new placement position may be among the most memorable — and perhaps stressful — of your career; especially if it is your first office based job. However, as with every stressful situation, there are a few steps you can take to avoid any unexpected surprises and give the best first impression. Read more

We all look forward to leaving the comfortable nest we call home. We grow up and the time comes when we need to spread our wings and take care of ourselves, gulp!  Once you move out, everything is sweet, you don’t have to clean daily, leave dishes to “soak in” for a couple of days, listen to loud music 24/7…the list is endless! Life is great until you realise you can’t cook and you might just not survive on dry chicken and over cooked rice for very long…

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Placements are all about new experiences and getting to experience things that will challenge you and of course teach you how to become a better professional. Impressing in your first interview will definitely give you the job but you will need to prove yourself many times during your placement period. Read more

Life of a student is really not too bad. Yeah it can get stressful at times, one day you are chilling with your friends, going out and enjoying the “adult” life and the next day you have 7 coursework deadlines, 3 presentations and an exam. We get it. We really do. We have all been there but believe me when I say this 9 to 5 malarkey is quite a different story. Read more

Let’s face it, a student’s finances are not amongst the richest ones. We know that most students live on a budget and try to spend as less as they can. When you are a student your favourite phrases while shopping become – “Buy one, get one free!”, “Three for the price of one” and so on and so on, you get the idea. This blog post will give you a bit more information about where to shop for what. For all of those who have no idea where would be the cheapest place to get stuff like laundry detergent to finding the best deal for a sack of potatoes, this one is for you. Read more

As if moving away is not hard enough, then you realise you are going to start a new placement and even more stress hits you. You keep on worrying whether it’s going to be difficult? Are you going to be under much pressure? Are your colleagues going to be nice? Are you going to like the whole experience in general? So many questions! Relax, don’t worry, this is normal. Every new venture is stressful as most of us have a fear of the unknown (if you don’t, good for you, you are a very lucky individual!). Read more

Cover letters are a very important part of your application process as it allows you to demonstrate your writing style and gives you an opportunity to expand on your skills, something that CV’s lacks as it is usually brief and simple.

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This week we would like to introduce you to one of the UK’s most exciting cities. Manchester has grown massively the past few decades and today is one of the top locations to live in. We don’t know if it the people, the atmosphere or the tones of different activities but there is definitely something about this city. Below, we have chosen the top ten reasons why we would choose Manchester for a placement year, but you will definitely discover your own once you get there. Read more

In the previous blog post we have discussed how to deal with the experience of moving away from home, for the majority of you this would be moving to a different city, but for some of you this could mean moving away to a completely new country. We know this can be stressful, therefore we have created this blog to guide you through the process of finding accommodation in the UK. In this blog we focused on websites rather than letting agents or universities as we are aware that the majority of students starting their placements are moving away and start their search by looking online as that would be the best and easiest way of securing accommodation. Read more

Having trouble deciding what kind of internship to pursue? Whether you have to undertake an internship as part of your university course or simply just to improve your CV, it is vital to choose the internship that will personally benefit you. Your work experience does not necessarily mean that this will be your final destination but landing the “right” internship can prove advantageous during your future journey.

Here at Placement UK we have developed a couple of pointers that you should consider in order to find the right placement.

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Why is it that when someone mentions the UK, our minds immediately go to London? Yes, it is the capital and largest city in the country however there is so much more to this island in the north of Europe than just London. That is why we created ‘Top 10’ lists for big cities in the UK that we think you should try out for your placement. Each one of the cities we have chosen have a unique atmosphere that students worship so we wanted you to know too.

This week we introduce to you Birmingham; located in the heart of England Birmingham – or ‘Brum’ as it’s affectionately known – has reinvented itself in recent years and there are more than 10 reasons for it to be your first option. Read more

So your internship is closely approaching and you’ve decided to pull yourself out of your comfy bed, and put together some applications to ensure that you actually get some work experience before you leave university for the big bad world.

That is something we can help with, below you will find the 5 do’s and 5 don’ts to applying and gaining a placement, some of these may seem obvious, but in this world you’ve got to play to the 1%.

Happy reading, and good luck!

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Today we are going to outline some important advice and tips to keep in mind when constructing your own placement CV.

First of all, here is a short list of essential skills and qualities that employers look for in a potential student; Communication, Interpersonal, Motivation, Teamwork, Problem solving, Leadership and Initiative. Read more

Survey carried finds that 72% of privileged young Britons admitted to having used family connections to secure a work placement.

A privileged background, attending private school and who you know are key factors in landing an internship, according to a report that paints a bleak picture of social mobility in modern Britain.

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A FASHION student from High Wycombe is settling in to life in the Big Apple after winning a prestigious placement with clothing giant Gap.

Catriona Pringle was selected from more than 100 students at her university for the all-expenses paid eight-week placement in New York.

The former Pipers Corner School pupil, who now studies Fashion Design at De Montfort University in Leicester, will work on the team designing men’s sweaters.
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When Goldman Sachs advertised its summer internship scheme in the United States last year it was inundated with more than 17,000 applications — almost 50 for every place. At Google, a record 40,000 young people battled for its work placement programme, reportedly making it harder for students to get into the Internet search engine for the summer than into a full degree course at Harvard or Yale. But should we be surprised that brainy young things are going to such lengths for a taste of life inside some of the world’s biggest companies? A few years ago, a decent degree from a good university would all but guarantee a graduate a reasonably respectable job. Not any more.
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