Work experience

An internship normally lasts from six to twelve  weeks. Employers often utilise their internship schemes as a talent pipeline for their graduate programmes, and many internships offered by large graduate recruiters are advertised to penultimate year students as they hope to convert summer interns into graduate hires. You may occasionally see internships advertised as ‘placements,’ so read the description carefully to make sure it is what you’re looking for.

The deadlines for applying for advertised summer internships are often in the autumn term, so it is worth starting to research your summer plans as early as possible. However, opportunities do still come up closer to the summer, especially with small and medium sized companies. Review our guidance on job hunting to understand where to look for advertised internships and understand more about the hidden job market.

Some companies offer shorter experiences specifically for first years (or second years on a four-year degree programme). These Insight days/weeks often take place over the Easter or Christmas vacation period and are designed to give students a taster of the industry and often include work shadowing, training sessions, presentations and tours of workplaces. Review our guidance on job hunting to understand where to look for advertised spring insights.

These are usually fixed terms of structured work experience, typically 6 or 12 months, and form part of the degree a student is on. Most departments at Imperial now offer the opportunity to undertake an industrial placement. If you are unsure whether you are currently registered on a course that includes an industrial placement, please contact your relevant department admissions team. Review our resources on Industrial Placements for further information.  

Part-time jobs provide an opportunity for developing skills whilst earning money. This is not always confined to the summer vacations and includes working in shops, pubs and bars, factories, restaurants, etc. It may be difficult to find work that directly aligns to the area of study, but the importance of transferrable skills gained from part-time work should not be overlooked. Employers place value on part-time work, as it enables students to develop transferable skills such as customer service experience and or effective communication (especially useful for students who may not speak English as a first language) as well as team-work and commercial awareness.

Most part-time jobs available in the area around the College tend to be in shops, bars or restaurants. There are not many part-time jobs based on the College campus and those that are will usually be publicised within departments and quickly filled. For work in the Imperial College Union you should ask directly in the Union.

Think carefully about the number of hours of work which you plan to undertake; you will need to make sure that you can balance the demands of your course with any part-time work you undertake. If you are studying in the UK on a visa then please check your visa conditions to ensure that you are only working the permitted number of hours per week during term time. If you have any queries about working hours and your visa please contact the International Student Support team.

This can consist of all kinds of projects, in the UK or abroad in vacation time. It also includes volunteering part-time during term. The amount of responsibility given varies from project to project but can be quite significant. For example, a student might undertake some voluntary tutoring at a local school, via Imperial’s Pimlico Connection programme. This experience could provide evidence of qualities such as initiative, commitment, communication and leadership as well as teaching experience for those interested in exploring this career option. Visit our Volunteering pages for more information.

Effective applications provide evidence that you have the desirable skills for the role or sector in which you are applying. However, this evidence does not just have to come from ‘traditional’ work experience. Remote opportunities are fantastic ways to evidence your interest in your chosen sector and develop relevant skills.

Remote online courses are a great way to learn unique skills you may not have an opportunity to develop in your degree. Research a job profile or sector, using resources such as Prospects, to understand the essential required skills. Using this knowledge, develop the relevant new skills using online courses such as LinkedIn Learning and massive open online courses (MOOCs). This extra-curricular online learning can showcase your motivation and proactive attitude to continued professional development.

Virtual work experience programs can also provide an opportunity to experience different business topics and undertake sector specific skills-based training activities. Get industry experience by completing company-backed online projects provided through platforms such as Forage, Bright Network and Springpod. 

Many large organisations that recruit in volume take graduates into graduate training schemes. As part of these schemes, graduates are trained and may have the opportunity to rotate through different areas of the organisation. Some organisations support their graduates through professional qualifications. This is often an excellent way to enter an organisation as graduates are seen as future leaders and are strongly supported.

Typically, the main recruitment into these schemes takes place in the autumn of the year before the graduates start work. Deadlines in some sectors can be as early as October but opportunities continue to open up throughout the year and some positions may still be unfilled in the summer. Ideally you should be ready to submit applications at the start of your final year. However, many schemes will accept applications from recent graduates as well as finalists, so you could also target this job market in the year after graduation.

Not all organisations recruit in high enough numbers or on a predictable enough timescale to warrant having a graduate scheme. Many SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) and start-ups recruit on an ad hoc basis through direct entry hires – they advertise roles at any time of year when they have a vacancy to fill. This is common in the media, not for profit and arts sectors, where there are very few graduate schemes.

Review our guidance on job hunting to understand where to look for advertised graduate schemes, and also see our information on making speculative applications.