Placement & Internship Preparation Guide
Finding placements, writing applications, preparing your CV and LinkedIn, interview preparation using the STAR method, and a 30-day preparation timeline.
12 min read
A placement or internship is the single most valuable thing most students can do for their employability. It gives you real experience, real references, and a real answer to the question employers will always ask: "can you do this job?" This guide covers everything from finding opportunities to arriving on day one ready to make an impression.
Finding opportunities
Most placement searches start and end with the university portal. That is a mistake — the best opportunities are often not listed there. A multi-channel search will uncover options that other students never see.
Where to look:
- –Your university's placement portal — start here, but do not stop here
- –LinkedIn Jobs — search for "placement", "internship", or "industrial placement" filtered by location and sector
- –RateMyPlacement and Prospects — aggregators specifically for placements and graduate schemes
- –Direct company websites — many organisations post placements only on their own site
- –Speculative applications — contact companies you want to work for directly, even if they have not advertised
- –Your network — ask your tutors, placement officers, and LinkedIn connections if they know of anything relevant
Application strategy
Volume without quality is a waste of time. A targeted application to 20 well-researched employers will outperform a spray of 100 identical CVs. For each application, spend 20 minutes understanding the company, the role, and how your experience maps onto what they are looking for.
💡 The speculative application
A speculative application — contacting a company that has not advertised a placement — works well for smaller organisations who may not have a formal placement programme but would be open to taking on a student. Keep it brief, show you understand what they do, and make a specific case for how you could contribute.
CV essentials for placements
Your placement CV should have:
- A personal statement at the top (3–4 lines) that names the type of placement you are seeking and summarises your strongest relevant experience
- Your education section near the top — for students, education is more recent and relevant than for experienced hires
- All experience described with outcomes and actions, not just responsibilities
- Relevant skills or technical competencies listed clearly
- A length of one to two pages maximum — one is better if you can do it
- No unexplained gaps
- Consistent formatting throughout — the same font, the same spacing, the same bullet style
LinkedIn for placement hunting
Your LinkedIn profile is often the first thing a recruiter sees after receiving your CV. Make sure it is consistent with your CV and adds to it — use the Featured section to show project work, use the About section to explain your placement goals, and turn on 'Open to Work' visible to recruiters.
Follow the companies you are applying to on LinkedIn before you apply. Engage with their content. When you get to the interview stage, mention something specific you saw on their LinkedIn or in their company updates — it shows genuine interest and very few candidates do it.
Interview preparation
Most placement interviews use competency-based questions — "Tell me about a time when...", "Give me an example of...". The STAR method is the most reliable way to structure your answers.
STAR method:
- –Situation — set the scene briefly. What was happening? What was the context?
- –Task — what was your specific responsibility or objective in that situation?
- –Action — what did you do? Be specific about your actions, not the team's actions
- –Result — what happened because of what you did? Quantify it if you can
Prepare five to eight STAR stories before any placement interview. They will cover almost any question you are asked. Choose stories that show different skills — leadership, communication, problem-solving, working under pressure, managing conflict.
The 30-day preparation timeline
- 1Week 1: Research — identify 20 target companies, research each one, and understand their placement programmes
- 2Week 2: Materials — write or update your CV and LinkedIn profile, tailor both to your target sector
- 3Week 3: Apply — send applications to your shortlist, personalise each cover letter
- 4Week 4: Prepare for interviews — practise STAR answers, research each company you hear back from, prepare questions to ask the interviewer
- 5Ongoing: Follow up on all applications, send thank-you emails after interviews, keep adding to your target list
💡 Think beyond the big names
Everyone applies to the well-known schemes. The competition for placements at well-known brands is fierce. Consider smaller companies in your target sector — the experience can be broader, the responsibility can be greater, and the impact you make can be more visible.
Once your placement is complete, read Updating Your LinkedIn After a Placement or Internship at /resources/placement-linkedin to make sure it reads like the professional experience it was.
For guidance on writing a cover letter that stands out, read How to Open a Cover Letter Students Actually Read at /resources/cover-letter-opening.
Next step
Get your profile placement-readyA Profile Polish reviewer will give you specific feedback on your LinkedIn ahead of your placement search. From £9.
To save this resource, press Ctrl+P (or Cmd+P on Mac) and select “Save as PDF”.
Profile Polish
Ready to apply this to your actual profile?
A Profile Polish takes everything a guide like this covers and applies it directly to your LinkedIn — with rewritten copy you can use straight away.
See the Profile Polish packages →From £9 · Personal review by Tom · 48-hour turnaround