A structured, project-focused engineering work placement or internship is one of the best ways to get some work experience. It might land you a job or final-year sponsorship. If not, it will certainly equip you with some of the career skills employers are looking for when recruiting graduates.

’Our placement scheme is based firstly around the preparation of students for our graduate programme and secondly around the development of softer skills like teamworking, planning and organising,’ says Joe Hendry Graduate Resourcing Officer at Corus, an international metal company that offers work-experience placements for engineering students.

’It can be hard to find graduates with these softer skills, and a placement is a great opportunity to develop them,’ says Hendry. A placement is also a chance to get contacts and try out a job for size, and will give you lots to talk about at interviews.

Typical engineering placements

Whether you’re interested in defence, energy or automotive engineering there is a placement out there for you.

The placements offered by large engineering companies last anything from a month to a year and are usually paid. Most engineering-placement students work as part of a team, but on some occasions may work on individual projects. Employers will usually take into account your background, experience and interests when matching you with a placement.

Whatever your engineering placement involves, you will get the opportunity to link theory learnt at university to a practical live project in industry. At BAE Systems, for example, you could find yourself working on a project to develop military vehicles. On a manufacturing engineering internship at Rolls-Royce, you might be involved in planning a new layout for a production facility.

It is also possible to do a work placement abroad. The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience operates a practical training exchange programme in more than 80 countries, from Croatia to Colombia. Whatever placement you choose, if you take advantages of the opportunities available, your engineering career will be off to a great start.

Go to the engineering career advice area.