Why you Need It

Employers no longer feel that a qualification on its own is enough for someone to be useful to them from day one. With increasing global competition, employers need a workforce that is one step ahead. Apart from candidates who are practised in those general skills they need people who are innovative and good problem solvers who can come into the organisation with fresh ideas.

Work experience gives you something to talk about at interview and shows that you have practised some of the transferable skills necessary in the workplace. It is also important that you value any type of work experience, not just the experience which may be specifically related to your qualifications.

Working in a bar or restaurant helps you develop key skills like teamwork, communication, numeracy and customer service. It give you responsibility and lets you use your own initiative. Any job or placement shows that you have motivation and commitment to offer a recruiter or employer.

You need to this carefully about how your experience relates to the job that you apply for, just listing a range of previous jobs and expecting potential employers to work out what experience you may have is not sufficient.

Work experience has also enables you to make informed choices about the kind of job you ultimately want. What elements about your work experience have you enjoyed and what elements would you prefer to avoid in your future career.

How to Get It

Your university careers service or job shop or centre may run placement programmes or advertise local opportunities. Careers services are particularly helpful regarding summer or Christmas internships.

If you are looking for paid employment then your local job shop or centre would be a good place to start. Unpaid voluntary work can be of a particular benefit. A recent study found that three-quarters of employers would prefer candidates with some voluntary work experience. When undertaking voluntary work you are likely to have more responsibilities in your role sooner as you may be asked to take on specific projects, organise fundraising, budgeting or managing people.

Your choice of work experience is likely to depend not just on your career ambitions but a variety of academic, social and financial factors. However, with the range of opportunities available there is no reason why your CV should ever be blank.