Name: Mel Caumont
Company: Loc8me
Loc8me: Loughborough
Course: Sport Management
The main reason I chose to do a placement year was primarily to enhance my CV. I wanted to gain more of a ‘real’ experience, rather than the experience I had from being a sales assistant in a shop. I wanted to learn what the scary working world was really like.
I looked online and went to a couple of careers fairs to see what types of placements were available. I applied to a wide variety of companies, of which I thought I could gain a good experience from; where my job role would matter to the company. Loc8me was such a small company that I knew I would be fully involved and I could make a big contribution during my placement.
Working full-time was a bit of a shock to the system at first, but I got used to the routine quick enough and I ended up really enjoying my placement. I learnt so much and gained so many transferable skills, the experience was so worthwhile. Being in a small enterprise meant that I had much more responsibility than I expected which was amazing to know I was making a real difference to the company.
I literally couldn’t describe a typical day, it didn’t exist … I was dealing with us interesting students after all! There were of course the usual day-to-day emails, phone calls and formalities. However, the fact that the majority of every day was different and a new challenge was presented is what made my job so much more entertaining.
Apart from learning everything there is to know about student housing and the geography of Loughborough, I gained so many practical skills that I could take into any work place, such as improved organisation, communication and team-work, to name a few. My time-management skills are now perfectly tuned in time for final year demands.
I would 100% recommend any student to do a placement if they can, it gives you so much valuable insight into what it’s like in graduate employment, you gain so many skills and can have some great experiences if you throw yourself in. It really enhances your CV and you may even secure yourself a job for after you graduate. Also a year out from studying is so refreshing making it a lot easier to come back for final year.
My plans after university are quite up in the air at the moment, I have a job open at Loc8me to go to if I want but I’m also keen to do some travelling and possibly work abroad before I settle into a graduate job, so we’ll see!
