Report of placement

Deliverable 3: Placement Report

The placement report is a personal reflection document. Crucially, the student must demonstrate how they have developed during their time on placement. While the report should detail the role and responsibilities of the student, it is not to be a simple summary or description of the work undertaken while on placement. That purpose is fulfilled by the work diary*, which should be included in an appendix to the placement report. Given the reflective nature of the document, the structure of each placement report will be different and students are free to devise a structure that best illustrates their attainment of the relevant employability skills. However, some suggested content areas are presented below.

* The work diary should consist of a basic weekly diary capturing experiences gained and the type and nature of work undertaken. The diary will act as an aid memoir for the completion of the placement report.

Overview This introductory section should provide background information about the organisation, including details such as industry sector and primary activities.

Role and responsibilities

Without violating company privacy, students should detail the tasks worked on, the areas of responsibility, the challenges faced, how those challenges were overcome, and the overall learning experience and professional development gained during the work placement. To maintain the conciseness of the report, any secondary information should be relegated to an appendix.

Employability Skills Development.

Students should discuss and reflect on the employability skills developed during the work placement. Five categories of employability skills are referenced below, however this list is not exhaustive and additional categories may be added where the student sees fit. The section titled Employability Skills Development should contain subsections for each of the five skills categories listed below. Students should reflect on how these skills were developed as a result of particular experiences during the placement. Relevant and specific examples should be included to illustrate the development of particular skills.

Communication Skills

Business correspondence, email, enquiry, report writing, presentation, face-to-face, telephone or video call communication.

Productivity Skills

Time management, leadership, collaboration, project management, punctuality, awareness of company policies and procedures, problem-solving.

IT Skills

Exposure to IT including software packages and automation systems, application of existing IT skills, developing an awareness of new computer software products.

Interpersonal, Teamwork and Networking Skills

Collaborative, ability to contribute to a team environment, assertive, receptive to feedback, ability to negotiate and compromise, cultivate an enduring professional network.

Application of Technical Knowledge

Ability to apply technical content learned in the classroom to the real world, consideration of how the technical knowledge gained through accounting, finance and economics modules is applied in the workplace.

Conclusion/Personal Statement

Students should conclude the report with a personal statement reflecting on how the experience gained during the placement has helped them to prepare for their future careers. In particular, the statement should identify the key intellectual and personal changes undergone by the student such as changes in attitudes, behaviours, perspectives and approaches. Students should use this section of the report as an opportunity to consider what positive changes they could make to their career strategy going forward as a result of their placement experience.

When reviewing the content of each section of the report it should be evident that sufficient detail has been provided on the following (where relevant):

· Information about the company, e.g. location, type of work, employees and departments.

· Technical experience acquired in areas such as finance, accounting or economics.

· Employability skills developed.

· Identification of areas where upskilling is required in order to build future career prospects.

Recruitment and Placement Reports: Basic Requirements

· Title page containing all appropriate information (title, student name, ID number, organisation name, supervisor’s name, contact details etc.)

· A signed statement stating that the contents of the report reflect a true and accurate depiction of the student’s experience, that all the material is the student’s own work, and that where content is not the student’s own work that they have taken due care and diligence to reference the source.

· The Placement Report must also contain on corporate headed paper: a signed statement from your supervisor indicating that they have read the report, they approve its content and they verify it is a fair and accurate account of your time on placement.

· A one page executive summary.

· A table of contents (with accurate page numbers).

· The main body of the report.

· Appendices (as appropriate).