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With public exam season underway, many pupils will be turning their attention to the long summer break, which is the perfect time to secure a work experience placement and get some valuable industry experience under their belt. Here, Talk ÍÑ¿ã°É's universities and higher education expert explains why work experience is so essential, and gives practical pointers on how to get the most out of any opportunity, both during the placement, and as a tool for future use.

The point of work experience

To be successful in anything nowadays you need much more than qualifications. By doing work experience, you will be learning those crucial ‘soft skills’ that employers look for, or ‘employability skills’ to give them another name. Here are some of the key ones:

• Business and customer/client awareness
• Numeracy
• Communication
• Problem-solving
• Team-working (including breakout groups in virtual situations)
• Self-management

The great thing about your placement is that it will allow you to demonstrate your attitude, which will be one of the most important qualities when it comes to applications and interviews. You can showcase your skills, knowledge and work ethic, and hopefully secure a reference for future applications.

Other benefits:

• It will set you apart from everyone else whether for a university application or a job interview – no one will have done exactly what you’ve done in the way you have interacted with it, so no one will have had the same experiences. If you can say what you did and, critically, what you learnt and how it helped shape your decisions, you’ll enhance your application.

• It can show an employer that you’re interested in their area of work and have been for a while, and the online opportunities show that you’re proactive with virtual placements when work experience in person can be hard to secure.

• It gives you something to talk about in your personal statement, for job applications and for interviews. Often, you’re asked things like ‘give an example of how you overcame a difficulty’ and there might be something you can draw on from your placement.

How to make a success of an in-person (on site) opportunity

• Contact your arranged placement a couple of days before you’re due to go. You do this out of courtesy, and to reassure both parties (you and them) that everything is in place before you start.

• Ask for the office dress code; you don’t want to turn up in a suit if everyone else is head to toe in casual, or vice versa.

• Find out what time you should be there. Plan your route, and maybe do the trip once before your first day. Leave a bit early; journeys always take longer than you think, particularly during rush hour when you will be travelling on your first morning. Which leads nicely to...

• Be punctual. It’s one of the things employers consider to be most important and is a strong marker of a good intern – they want to know you’ll turn up on time when meeting clients.

• Be determined to learn something. Write down the things you do during your placement so that you can refer to them and use them in the future.

• It might sound old school, but it still impresses – pick up a pen and paper to make notes if you’re asked to do something or attend a meeting. Doing things solely on your phone can be misinterpreted (more later).

• Engage with the experience. Be interested, ask questions, look and learn and see what is happening around you. Ask if you don’t know or don’t understand. Q: What do you do if you’ve finished a task? A: You ask for another. Q: What would you do if you don’t understand what you’ve been asked to do? A: You ask for clarity to enable you to do it well. Q: What do you do if you find yourself at a loose end? A: You ask if there’s anything you can do to help anyone.

• Above everything else and to make the whole thing a success for you, remember to be polite and friendly; there are no prizes for sulky, cool or morose in the workplace – I’m afraid they’ll just think you’re immature. Even if it’s not your chosen line of work, have fun and make the most of it by being helpful – you will gain so much more, and make the whole experience positive for you and your employer.Keep the professional contact details of the people you work with so that you can get in touch afterwards, particularly if you feel you had a good relationship with them.

What if it’s a virtual opportunity (or has elements of virtual meetings)?

Here are some extra things to consider in the virtual environment. Some are live, some are recorded (when you do them in your own time).

• Make sure you have the relevant software downloaded prior to the start time. Test the link to the platform from which the experience will be run.

• For both live and recorded placements, your presence will be logged, and you will be expected to complete tasks. You may be asked to submit them, so keep a record for yourself too. Sometimes you need to be able to confirm that you attended on future application forms.

• For live experiences where cameras may be switched on, make sure that you are wearing smartish clothing and that your background is appropriate.

• Find out what time the sessions start on each day and have everything you need to hand so that you don’t miss vital information. Be punctual – as I’ve said, your presence (and time of logging in) will be registered on the platforms.

• Make sure you take part in any breakout sessions. You will be noticed if you are a contributor, either by speaking or adding to the meeting comments and notes.

Things to avoid for all work experience placements

• Don’t use the company internet or email for personal use or browsing under any circumstances. You may be given access to enable you to work, but it must only be used to that end. All screen and internet activity in companies is monitored and stored for later reference if needed.

• Don’t ever be negative about others in the company – you never know how people are connected. Obviously, if you have a serious complaint, that can be dealt with through the appropriate channels.

• A word on phone/smartwatch etiquette. You know this already but… Never look at your device when you are talking to someone (or they are talking to you), unless you are both engaged in the content. Remember that if you look at your device during a face-to-face conversation (or visibly online), you are subliminally telling the other person they are less interesting than what is happening on your screen. Avoid phone/watch use in meetings, as it looks inattentive. If you have to look something up that is relevant to the meeting, put it down again immediately.

You’d be amazed – phone and other device etiquette can really set you apart from others in the workplace, so take it seriously.

After your placement

• It is extremely important that you email and thank your placement for having you; they will have given up time and resources. As part of the thank you, ask for a short reference so you can use it in the future.

• Hold on to the contact details for your placement, both in person or virtual. The working world is about networking – you never know when you might want to contact the company either for another placement or even for employment.

Remember, the key message of this advice is that you’re going to learn something and then turn that to your advantage. Good luck – enjoy your time and make the most of it!