Deciding whether to do a placement year can be a seriously big decision for some University students, and it’s completely understandable why!

There can be so many things that you find yourself taking into consideration. You’re deciding if you want to take a year away from your friends, debating whether it will be worth elongating your degree for an extra year, or worrying about the extensive process it takes to secure a placement.

If you find yourself thinking even just one of those things, it’s time to stop! Catch those indecisive thoughts, stop them swirling your mind and let me tell you why choosing to a placement year will be one of the best decisions you’ll ever make!

There are so many benefits of doing a placement year, and once you’ve completed it, you will genuinely be amazed at how you’ve developed not only in your professional abilities, but as a person.

You will learn skills that University just can’t teach you. Gaining a real understanding of professionalism and what it’s like to work in a team where business is always on the line! Whatever industry you choose a placement in, you will gain invaluable experience and you will only change for the better.

But there is one benefit that’s the greatest of them all! By doing a placement year, your chances of securing a graduate job will significantly increase- massively! Placements shape you as a person, creating positive repercussions for your future. Let me tell you more…

Do a placement year to increase your employability!

Fact is, employers love experience!

It really is vital that you get undergraduate work experience before you graduate because this is one of the key things that employers look for in a potential candidate. You’ll have the skills already in the bag, which means that you’ll be ready to dive straight into the job, head first. There will be far less faffing about and understanding to do, because you already know how a business operates and what it takes to be cooperative, efficient and productive.

It also highlights to the employer that you’ve taken on the huge challenge of putting yourself out there, something that requires guts, determination and persistence – these are super valuable attributes to any employer!

Nonetheless, this also shows that you’re willing and enthused to take on new opportunities in an industry you’re interested in. Your understanding of the industry will have increased enormously, and this means that when you arrive at your graduate job, you will feel far less daunted; assured in your ability to understand any given task. Your relevant experience will provide you with the confidence to crack on with clarity, and your focus without fear will be in full swing!

It’s true that the placement process can be stressful and sometimes, it can be hard to stay motivated due to the lengthy process. However, the fact that you’re able to manage the placement search, your university work and general life says a lot to an employer about you. It not only highlights your industry skills and knowledge, but it also shows off your work ethic and ability to take on multiple challenges. This is a key skill that you need to work successfully in a diverse and fast paced business environment.

Ultimately, if you do a placement year, you will be snapped up far quicker than a graduate who didn’t undertake one! If you want to reduce the amount of stress that you’ll get once you try and find a job after graduation, then I seriously recommend you take on the opportunity to do a placement year. Believe in your abilities and get yourself out there!

You will be so proud of yourself. Achieving something you might not have believed you were able to ever achieve, is the best feeling, and a placement year certainly provides you with that.

ProspectSoft Placements – a little bit about us!

So, hopefully by now I've persuaded you to do a placement year! To give you a little more info on the awesome placement opportunities available to students out there, have a little read about the brilliant placement roles we offer, here at ProspectSoft. I'm sure they'll take your fancy!

Who are we?

ProspectSoft is a UK-based Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and eCommerce Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company. ProspectSoft creates, develops and sells its software services to more than 5,000 SME users in the UK and worldwide. We pride ourselves on our Stock-Aware CRM, as well as providing a suite of eCommerce and eMarketing solutions for small-medium sized businesses.

Why do a placement with us?

Here at ProspectSoft, we have been repeatedly recognised as a leading employer! Our scheme has been noticed on a national scale, and we are proud to announce that in 2018 we were awarded “Best Small to Medium-sized Undergraduate Employer” at RateMyPlacement’s NUE Awards; this is an award we have won an incredible 6 times now!

We know that any business is only as good as its people, which is why we employ the very best placement students so our clients receive the very best service. Each year we invest heavily in recruiting, training and developing our placements. As a result, 51% of our current employees did a placement year at ProspectSoft!

We truly value our placements and treat them exactly like full time employees. This means that from the get-go you have a huge amount of responsibility and are given amazing opportunities to ensure you gain a plethora of fantastic skills!

What roles do we offer?

• Marketing Assistant

• Sales & Account Management Assistant

• Customer Services Technician

• Development Assistant

• Developer for Zing (Software Consultancy division of ProspectSoft)
  
  

Check out our Placement Website for more information about each role & remember, a placement year will provide you with so many opportunities - a challenge you won’t ever regret accepting!

 This blog was written for Cardiff University.