Thinking about ways to enhance your degree and improve your employability? A placement year between Stage Two and your final year can be a great way to try out an industry before graduation. It gives you real workplace experience, and loads to talk about in future interviews. It can also save you a lot of time and stress in your final year. You'll have a clearer idea of what you want, as well as connections and achievements on your CV to talk about at interviews.
Whether you’re an undergraduate student in Stage Two and considering applying now, or a Stage One student thinking ahead, read our testimonials from final year students who have been through the process.
Not sure where to start? Remember, the Business School has a dedicated Placement & Study Abroad team to support students. You can contact the team at nubs.placementandstudyabroad@newcastle.ac.uk.
If you're in Stage Two you can also read more testimonials, and the placement requirements, in your NBS2000 canvas community.
Joe, Marketing and Management student
Completed a placement with Mondelēz International in 2023/24
Joe completed his placement in Birmingham, working in communications at the home of Cadbury.
“During my time at Mondelēz, one of the worlds largest snacking companies, I worked as a Communications Intern. I was located in Birmingham, at the home of Cadbury, arguably Mondelez’s most iconic brand. Due to the size of the organisation and with working in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, my tasks varied but my main responsibilities revolved around content creation for a wide range of audiences, both internal and external.”
“Before my placement, I wish I had known that for many organisations, and especially in my scenario, that they really do value placement year employees. They want you to bring your fresh perspective and you will be trusted from the get-go with real responsibilities. Meaning you will learn quick and fast.”
Martha, Business Management student
Completed a placement with Newcastle Building Society in 2023/24
Martha gained hands-on experience in both procurement and supplier management during her placement.
“My placement was at Newcastle Building Society in the Procurement and Supplier Management Team. I spent my first 6 months in Supplier Management and my final 6 months in Procurement. I did a lot of work surrounding ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) such as creating a monthly carbon balance sheet with other early talent members. I also did information gathering around our suppliers to understand our supply chain’s position on ESG. On a more daily basis, I assisted my line manager with new procurements and contract renewals and even did a few by myself. This was really helpful to see the procurement process as a whole – from going out to market to identify the preferred supplier to signing the contract. Within supplier management, I worked a lot on ensuring our supplier due diligence was up to date and worked with cyber security to identify the risk our suppliers posed and how we can mitigate this. Overall, my tasks varied greatly but I feel my team provided me with such a great variety of tasks.”
“My main piece of advice would be to gain some work experience – whether this be a placement, internship etc. It is extremely valuable and prepares you for the world of work.”
Michael, Economics student
Completed a placement at The Office for National Statistics in 2023/24
Michael worked as a data analyst, with his placement leading to a graduate job offer in the Civil Service.
“My role was as an economic data analyst within the Office for National Statistics. This is part of the wider Government Economic Service system, which is responsible for all Civil Service Economics placements. My placement was a hybrid working role that involved a mix of office and home working. My main role was to analyse the data that had been generated by the rest of my team, identifying and explaining key economic trends. I would write up this analysis into a detailed brief and then make a presentation from that brief at stakeholder meetings. I also wrote a section of my team's biennial Ownership of UK Shares publication and contributed to the redrafting of other sections.”
“All placement students in the GES are invited to undertake an Economic Assessment Centre at the end of their placement. This is an intensive interview process, but if you are successful, as I was, you are offered a returning graduate job at the department where you did your placement. This is a fantastic opportunity and provides great peace of mind as I enter my final year that I’ve got a graduate job offer, even if I want to apply for other opportunities. On a wider note, my placement gave me an idea of what work looks like as an economist and a civil servant. This is valuable because before I did my placement, I wasn’t really sure how any of that would work.”
