What is the Nottingham Internship Scheme and why should you get involved?

Finding reliable (and well paid) internships for summer and Easter break can be challenging. Many internships have complex and time consuming application processes. More often than not this puts off busy students from applying. Luckily, for us UoN students, the Nottingham Internship scheme provides a foot in the door opportunity to boosting that CV!

What is it?

The Nottingham internship scheme offers UoN undergraduates the chance to work with small local businesses and charities. The aim to build skills, network with companies and increase employ-ability. The scheme boasts over 30 different placements run both over Easter and summer. There’s bound to be one that interests you. Unfortunately, not everyone can apply but if you meet the criteria go for it. There’s no harm in applying and securing a placement could be invaluable.

What you get out of it:

1. Skills and Experience

The obvious one! Internships are designed to grow your skill set and immerse you in professional experience. Since the majority of businesses associated with the internship scheme are small and local you will receive direct one to one interaction with owners and directors. If you make a good impression these are the people that will provide great references for future employment. There’s always a chance to learn something new. Some placements might even offer training courses – that means EVEN MORE CV skills!

2. You get paid for your hard work

As struggling students it’s always nice to get paid for your hard work. Although giving up a few weeks of your holiday might initially seem off-putting getting paid to do so makes the deal sweeter. Finding well paid internships can also be a struggle. Often, knowing they’re high demand companies pay students a lot less for internship work – sometimes you might not get paid at all!

3. Personal development

Not only is gaining CV skills great, completing and participating in internship placements will do wonders for personal development. Whether that’s gaining confidence in writing applications, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone to communicate with new people or just the overall feeling of independence, these small benefits make the world of difference. Enriching your university experience with more than just lectures is a sure way to graduate as a well-rounded educated individual – who is also very employable!

If this post hasn’t been persuasive enough you can find out more about the Nottingham Internship Scheme from the SU website; https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/careers/students/work-experience/nottingham-internship-scheme/summer-internships/index.aspx. Applications for summer internships are likely to be open soon so keep an eye out! Do something productive with your free time – your CV will thank you later…

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