How Do I Find A Placement?

At Brunel we have a dedicated team of subject specific Placement Advisers who are here to help guide you through the process.

Once you have enrolled on your course, you can book an appointment with your Placement Adviser via the Appointment Booking System who can give you specialist advice on your placement search, including: CV’s, Interviews, Psychometric Tests, where to look for placements and much more.

Most placement opportunities can be found on the Brunel Jobs Board. If you are a current student please click here for more information.

Ultimately it’s your responsibility to find a placement opportunity, but your Placement Adviser is there to help every step of the way.

There are different placement options offered at Brunel, depending on the course that you choose to study.

This can mean a unique duration or start date, so please check what type of placement your course offers via the find your course page. You can see the different placement options below: 

Thick sandwich placement (4-year degree course) Your industrial placement is incorporated into your third year so you gain work experience to take into your final year.

Thin sandwich placement (4-year degree course) The thin sandwich placement comprises two six-month placements, the first taken between your first and second year, the second between your second and third year.

Compressed sandwich (3-year degree course) The compressed sandwich (3-year course) involves completing two summer placements during both your first and second year.

Yes you can! You should inform your Placement Adviser so they can start the approval process to assess the suitability of your placement before you can begin working. 

The placement team advertise some opportunities outside the UK. Placements abroad are subject to a risk assessment by your Placement Adviser. 

Yes they are. Your placement will be assessed by your academic department when you complete your placement year. You’ll be allocated a work placement tutor who will be able to answer all your assessment questions. 

Yes, absolutely. While you’re on placement you are still enrolled as a Brunel student, so you’re entitled to access all the same facilities. This includes services such as welfare and wellbeing, the library, the Student Centre and Student Union.

For more information please click here.

Typically, there are both paid and unpaid placement opportunities available for student to apply to. Our Placement team do their best to help students by promoting both. 

• A paid placement is being paid £200 or more per week.
• For further information about work experience and the national minimum wage, please go to the GOV.UK website.
  
• Please note paid opportunities are not always available in some sectors.

You’ll find the placement fee for each course via the Find Your Course Page.

Please contact admissions with any other questions about fees and finance.

We offer you the opportunity to carry out a placement as a Postgraduate student but please do check if your course has the option for this. The following courses have the option to do a placement with support from your Placement Adviser:

• MSc Banking and Finance
• MSc Business Finance
• MSc Finance and Accounting
• MSc Finance and Investment
• MSc Corporate Brand Management
• MSc Management
• MSc Marketing
• MSc Sustainability, Entrepreneurship and Design
• MSc Environmental Management
• MSc International Relations

There are various reasons to do a placement as a masters student:

• If you are trying to change fields: This is your chance to try a new role.
• Move up a level: If you are looking for a more challenging position, and want to have more responsibility, or managerial tasks in your work.
• No UK experience: if you have no local experience and want to gain experience working in a UK organisation as an international living in the UK, this is an opportunity to do so.
• No experience at all: if you have no work-experience at all, a placement can provide firstly experience. However, it can also give you the right amount of entry level responsibility that you can take onto jobs after the placement and after university.

Yes, you can! An Entrepreneurship Placement is an alternative to an industry placement where students get the chance to start their own business and work for themselves. With the help of the Entrepreneur Hub, you can turn your business idea into reality. For more information and advice, please email hub@brunel.ac.uk. 

Please note, the placement would need to be approved by your Placement Adviser before commencing.