The SHU Internship Scheme is a fantastic initiative that’s been set up by the Directorate of Education and Employer Partnerships, in conjunction with the Careers and Employability Centre. It enables students to gain practical experience working within their chosen industry whilst ensuring they are paid for their time and able to afford accommodation and travel etc.
The scheme is available to all full-time, fee paying students, including international students, dependent on their individual visas. So long as you find a work placement either yourself or through the Careers Centre via the UniHub site, the University will supply you with a bursary to cover living costs! To take a look at the Internships on offer, head to the SHU Unihub site and search for summer jobs/internships, all the internships aren’t listed at specific times/dates so, you just have to keep checking back from about March/April time to see when they are added. The Careers centre are fantastic at listing the opportunities through various sources such as Twitter, the UniHub and more.
The Careers Centre begins to advertise internship opportunities as part of the scheme from around March time and keep advertising them through the summer. You need to complete 160 hours to receive the funding (if you’re working full-time this is about 40 hours per week, meaning you’ll be done in around 4-5 weeks) and are also required to keep a time sheet document to keep a track of the hours you’ve done and a short 500-word case study, detailing what you’ve done on your internship and what you gained from the experience. So long as you complete the 160 hours before the end of September, you’ll receive all your funding for the project.
My Experience
This summer I did the SHU Internship Scheme again as an Events Runner with Sheffield Doc/Fest. I applied for it for three reasons…
- I’m starting a Masters at Hallam in September in Arts and Cultural Management and I have no idea how arts and cultural events and venues work – museums, art galleries, film festivals etc are amazing and I’m very interested in them but, I didn’t know much about everything that goes on behind the scenes.
- I’ve heard a lot about Sheffield Doc/Fest from delegates, volunteers, former staff etc. and it’s always been positive, it’s a hard-working team that works together and has a laugh and although things get a little crazy and hectic, it feels worth it for the experience you have and to make sure the festival is as good as it can be each year.
- There’s a bit of a gap in my CV with regards to events, I wanted to use some of my free time over the summer to gain vital experience in this area, not just before my Masters but just in general. These days it’s vital to have experience to go along with your CV, the long summer months is the perfect opportunity for this!
So today is my last day at Doc/Fest and overall, it’s been a positive experience. I’ve learnt a lot about what goes into organising and running an event, I’ve done a LOT of event scheduling, purchasing, venue dressing, hospitality running and even got to run some drinks receptions by myself which was a massive confidence booster for me. I’ve certainly enjoyed working with others to create the events, as well as working directly with sponsors, volunteers and venue staff to ensure everything runs smoothly. People were right, it’s been hectic, especially during the festival period itself, but it’s also felt worth it and I feel like I’ve achieved a lot and gotten exactly what I wanted to get out of this internship which is a good feeling!
If you’re interested in working with Sheffield Doc/Fest or taking part in the SHU Internship Scheme, I’ve included a lot of links in this article that will take you where you want to go!
