If you are concerned about a lack of detail on your CV come graduation time then taking part in a placement year or finding some relevant work experience during the holidays could help you bridge that gap.
Placement year
Many of our degrees include an option to pause your studies for a year in order to carry out a work placement in a relevant organisation or field. This takes place after your second year, and once you have completed your placement you will return to the university for your final year of undergraduate study.
With support from the university Careers team and our department, you will identify and apply for placement year opportunities with external organisations. You will gain valuable work experience that you can add to your CV and may be able to use a contact as a reference when applying for jobs.
Work experience
If you don’t want to spend a whole year away from your studies then you can look for more flexible work experience opportunities, especially during the summer break.
Along with standard internships offered by large, established organisations, you could find suitable opportunities through Essex Interns. Managed by the university, Essex Interns helps connect small and medium businesses with no formal internship schemes with students looking for work experience.
The university also offers paid employment opportunities for students on our campuses, such as our Student Ambassadors who help represent the university at events on campus.
Socials, Hospitality, and OUTreach Scheme (SHOUTS)
Our department also runs our Socials, Hospitality, and OUTreach Scheme. This scheme runs for 8 weeks in a term and requires minimal time commitment (normally no more than 5 hours per week) so it can fit in around your timetable.
As part of SHOUTS, you will work within a small team on projects that promote and showcase our work and department. Projects vary from term to term, but can include helping run social media accounts, contributing to the departmental newsletter, or helping promote or manage events run by the department.
You will gain experience in teamwork, project management, and communication (including digital communication), while learning more about aspects such as outreach, research promotion, and how to develop engagement and impact with different audiences.