Davitt Jones Bould, the largest specialist real estate law firm in the UK, have opened their Undergraduate Placement applications. They have written for us about their placement opportunities and provided some application advice too.
The placement is truly like no other as we deliberately don’t put you through a structured programme. Instead, you will be working in line with the real-time demands of the business, giving you experience of what running a business is really like.
You will work directly with a talented team of Davitt Jones Bould people, including colleagues in the Business Services Centre, lawyers based all over the UK and Davitt Jones Bould’s leadership team. You will be given responsibility straightaway for a wide range of tasks – some will play to your strengths, and some will challenge you to learn new skills.
You will be provided with dedicated on the job mentoring and training, as well as access to Davitt Jones Bould’s wider training programmes and courses.
During the current academic year, the Careers Service at the University of Bristol are running a new series of events: Small Business, Big Opportunity (SBBO).
This series will feature panels, employer presentations and events designed to help you explore the unique opportunities that working for a smaller business can offer.
Here are 5 reasons working for a small and medium size enterprise (SME) could be the best fit for you:
Our 2-day Autumn Careers Fair is just around the corner! The Employer Showcase will take place on Wednesday 2 and Thursday 3 October. The event will run from 12:30 pm until 4 pm each day and will be held at the Bristol Beacon on Trenchard Street.
To help you make the most of the day, we have pulled together our top tips on how to prepare for the fair
Download and use the Career Fair Plus app to make a plan of who to speak to
You can download CareerFairPlus on your phone before the event to access an interactive floorplan for both days, as well as the full list of employers, tips for the day and resources so that you can research in advance of attending. Use the inbuilt filters to find out which employers are targeting you, as well as those that sponsor visas, have South West opportunities and more.
Hello! My name is Tom and I took an internship with QLM Technology for 3 months, funded through the SME Internship Scheme.
I initially contacted the company through their website and quickly received a response and interview from the R and D Team. I had heard about the company through their links with Bristol University and the QTEC Quantum incubator program that the company was founded from.
I was looking to gain experience in research and experimental science, since my degree had unfortunately been impacted by COVID, reducing the opportunity for me to access labs during my studies. The company were happy to host me and give me the opportunity to learn lab skills while also seeing how a small company works.
In April 2024, I worked as an Earth Observation Intern with SatSense, a Leeds-based SME (Small/medium-sized Enterprise) that provides services assessing, monitoring, and alerting for changes in ground deformation for a wide range of clients using satellite-borne radar imagery.
Lots of social science students are looking for work experience but are struggling to find something that’s right for them. If you’re searching for valuable work experience to help you in your career plans, here are some ideas to help you in your search.
Top tips from the public sector
To find out more about work experience in the public sector, I spoke to James Darley from Transform Society. He was clear that there are often plenty of opportunities to get work experience in the public sector, it just requires some research to find them.
Councils can advertise opportunities for local students on their website, so it’s worth signing up to their jobs mailing lists. Bristol City, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire are our local councils.
Hi, my name is Harry and I am a final year Management with Innovation student at the University of Bristol. This course is a four-year integrated master’s degree, combining specialist core disciplines such as Management, Economics, Physics and many others, with Innovation, to tackle the growing needs of the 21st Century.
Over the summer, I had the wonderful opportunity to join INVISTA, a global manufacturer of fibers, polymers and chemical intermediates, and a subsidiary of Koch Industries. I worked as a Business Operations Intern, joining the wider EU Supply Chain team.
I engaged with the Careers Service at the University of Bristol several times in my third year, when I was looking at, and applying for internships. The service provided me with resources to help my application stand out and signposted internships, including the INVISTA summer programme that I recently completed.
During this internship, I worked in the relatively new Centre of Excellence (COE) team. This formed part of the wider Enablement team, where the focus is very much on innovation. I found the opportunity to be a part of this team exciting, as it allowed me to use the theory I had learned in my course and apply it in the real world to improve efficiency within selected Supply Chain processes.
From a more tangible perspective, I got the chance to experiment and use tools new to me, such as ChatGPT to automate a process, and worked with developers to enhance a current system of capturing customer information. Through the culture of Principled-Based Management™, I also had the opportunity to ‘fail’, and take it as a learning opportunity for when things don’t go to plan – as they so often do. Therefore, this role provided an opportunity for both personal and professional growth.
Following the conclusion of my internship, INVISTA kindly offered me a full-time position as a Business Operations Specialist beginning in 2024, following my graduation. I will be joining the Customer Experience team, where I will be the focal point for my customers to ensure they get the very best service we can provide. I am really looking forward to beginning my career at INVISTA and furthering my knowledge in supply chains and the manufacturing industry.
Whilst studying, I found taking part in activities such as representing the University in tennis and being part of the innovation society, (firstly as Kit Secretary before moving on to Equality Director) will help me develop skills for working life, through teamwork, leadership, and people-skills.
I think one of the key skills to work in this industry would be the drive to continually keep learning. However, there are some skills which would be more obvious to increase your chances of getting into this sector, like teamwork, customer service skills, and experience using software such as Salesforce, SAP, and PowerBi.
I would also encourage you to want to keep learning more about whatever it is you are doing. For example, before my internship, I had very little knowledge of supply chains, business operations or the manufacturing industry, before my internship, but I was given a chance to learn because I showed the drive and commitment to constantly and quickly learn or adapt.
“Hi, I’m Sophia. I undertook an SME Internship as a recent graduate from my Neuroscience BSc. I worked for The Brain Charity, a Liverpool-based charity that provides support to individuals affected by neurological conditions.
I found the charity during my search for an internship that would align with my morals. I contacted them directly, and to my delight, they were happy to take me on as an intern through the SME Internship Scheme, as a Neurodiversity Training Co-ordinator.
My job
My role was a Neurodiversity Training Co-ordinator, which involved various administrative and miscellaneous tasks that supported and enhanced their Neurodiversity Training programme.
It offers training sessions to clients and their employees, to educate and share knowledge on how to best support neurodivergent employees in the workplace.
With our two-day careers fair, the Employer Showcase, fast approaching, here are some of our top tips to help you prepare for the day.
The Employer Showcase is happening on Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 October, from 12:30 p.m. to 4 pm at Bristol Beacon, Trenchard Street. If you haven’t already, make sure you book your place on mycareer.
First and foremost, the Career Fair Plus app will be your best friend for navigating the Employer Showcase and making the most of your time there. The app offers an interactive floorplan, resources to research ahead of time, and filters to view your employers of interest to guide you through your experience.
Top tip: There are different employers attending each of the days, so we recommend coming along on both days to get the most out of it.
Once you’ve downloaded the app and got a feel for what to expect at the event, here’s what you can do to get the most value out of the two days:
This academic year we have run some amazing City Challenges, boosting students’ skills and helping local community organisations to increase their profile and impact.
More than 90 students from across all years and a range of disciplines have given an afternoon of their time to help eight non-profits solve a real dilemma they were facing.
In February this year, we welcomed student organisation Bristol Hub, who wanted ideas on how to recruit more student volunteers and raise their profile and reach with students.
Bristol Walk Fest joined us in April, looking for ideas to attract a younger crowd to their annual event and brainstorm fundraising ideas.
Last month we hosted Bristol Cider Project, a University of Bristol initiative, which needed ideas to source windfall and waste apples from Bristol residents to make into a community cider.
“Overall, the City Challenges Programme was instrumental in providing me with valuable insights into how community-focused initiatives can create a positive impact on society.” City Challenge student
