Businesses are being urged to benefit from the technical knowledge and fresh ideas of leading students by offering them internships.
Lancaster University is seeking placements for students studying a range of technical subjects such as chemistry, computing and communications, cyber security, engineering, environmental science, maths and statistics, physics and psychology.
The university would particularly welcome interest from firms with opportunities for students to work between July and September next year, although part-time roles throughout the year would also be welcome.
Experts at the university work with host companies to ensure the projects meet specific business needs.
As an example, Chemistry student Callum Wallace completed a two-month internship at Thornton Cleveleys-based Victrex, where he worked in their labs and examined polymers’ thermal and mechanical properties.
“We find that interns such as Callum are very useful in driving this sort of work forward by focusing on it, whereas permanent staff typically have numerous other priorities,” said Adam Chaplin of Victrex.
“Callum was very helpful and we couldn’t have completed this research as quickly without his help and the Lancaster University Science and Technology Internship Programme.”
Pam Pickles, Student Employability Manager at the university’s Faculty of Science and Technology, added: “Internships are a great, cost effective way for businesses to gain new ideas and insights from young, enthusiastic and self-motivated people.
“We have a strong track record of delivering solutions for businesses as well as helping to ensure our talented students gain quality additional experience and skills that will be invaluable for when they complete their studies and begin their careers.”
Lancaster arranges more than 500 placements a year and, last year, all participating companies stated they would recommend the programme to other employers, while 48 per cent of interns were retained by their hosts.
Internships can vary in length from one month up to 12 months and can be full-time or part-time. Internships cost the businesses £1,200 +VAT per month and this money is paid to the student as a wage. Some funding is available for SMEs.
More information is available by visiting www.lancaster.ac.uk/sci-tech/internships/ or by contacting Pam Pickles on 01524 510193 or emailing p.pickles@lancaster.ac.uk
