Placements

When you attend College or University there are many programs that offer placement opportunities: co-op programs, summer placements, and so on. It all depends on the program and the university.

I had the chance to participate in two placements, and they were amazing learning opportunities for me. The problem with attending a conventional post-secondary program is that you get the education, and then when you go for an interview after you graduate, you don’t have the experience. With a placement you can get both

I had friends who never thought of where they wanted to work when they finished school. When they picked their placements they didn’t give it much thought; they just wanted something easy. I spent a lot of time thinking about where I would like to work when I finished school, and did placements that were within my top two choices. I figured it would give me the edge for when I went to get a job. During my last semester, I did my second placement and was hired by my current employer immediately afterwards for a contract position. I was stunned, amazed, delighted. There's even a good chance of my contract being renewed or the position becoming permanent.

Two friends of mine took courses where there were no co-op placements available but achieved the same result in a different way. They were in Social Service programs and both applied for positions in summer camp programs, one for children, the other for disadvantaged and challenged older kids. Their leg up was the prof, who wrote letters of recommendation for them, which both my friends deserved big time. So now, when they finish and the time comes to apply for a permanent job, they'll have good experience and another recommendation: one from an employer to add to the prof's. Only trouble was that they made minimum wage all summer, so both were even more short of money than they could have been. Well, for the one person, it didn't really matter because her parents are well off. But for the other, she's putting herself through school with work and loans; she gave up the high-paying road-crew job she'd had in previous summers, and then the loan people harassed her for doing that and reduced her loan. She'll survive, though, and will be in a much better position to apply for a job in the field when she graduates.

So if you do have the chance to do a placement, pick something related to where you might want to work afterwards. That way you are getting the experience to add to your education. Also, if there are no opportunities for placement at your school, try working or even volunteering for a related organization that interests you; this will give you experience that may set you apart from others when you start searching for a job.