Try out work experience

Work experience gives you a taste of what it’s like in the world of work. It’s a great chance for you to:

get out of the classroom and learn in the real world
build your confidence and communication skills
get some experience to put on your CV
try out different jobs to help you decide what to do in the future.

Lots of young people do work experience during Year 10 or 11 or as part of their college course. But it’s never too late and you can do it whatever your age, from Year 10 onwards. Having a work experience placement under your belt will improve your chances when applying for a job.

The hours you work during your placement will need to be agreed between you, your employer, your school and your parent or carers. They can be flexible and fitted around your school or college work, but you could be expected to do a full working day (normally 7 to 8 hours, with breaks).

Your school or college may have a work experience co-ordinator or teacher who you can chat to and who will help you find a work experience placement. You will also need to get permission from your parent or carer and give any medical information. If you are at school then the school will need to approve the place you want to work, to make sure that you will be safe and supported.

If you are not at school or college and you have an idea of where you want to work or what you would like to do, you can organise work experience yourself. You will need to contact local employers and find out if they will take you on. If you want more help with this you can visit a Connexions centre.

Caption: Student on work experience placement

There are lots of different jobs you can try out in the Council, from working on the Connexions 360 website, to working with children or getting out and about with the Environment team. Take a look through all the different work placements you can do: Work experience at East Sussex County Council – Czone.

For more information about work experience at East Sussex County Council, contact workexperience@eastsussex.gov.uk

Have you done work experience? What was it like?