Student, Diamond, undertook a 3-month placement with an insolvency business in the British Virgin Islands. Find out about her experience, standout moments, and how she obtained the placement.
How did you secure your placement?
I am from the Virgin Islands originally. The Government there runs an internship programme which I saw advertised on LinkedIn. I had to submit an application and then do an interview. They have a pool of students and pool of businesses looking for interns and they match them up to assign students to the right internship.
What did your placement involve? What did you do on a day-to-day basis?
I was working for an insolvency business, so it was lots of administrative work associated with closing businesses - filing, computer-based work using Excel and Microsoft, sorting through paperwork, as well as court visits.
How did what you learnt on your course help you with your placement?
I found the tax consulting module to be particularly helpful, as this is something I had to check as one of my placement tasks. Our professional development sessions in class were also useful and helped me to prepare by getting us involved in group work and writing letters.
What have you learnt from placement?
It was really helpful as an internship as it gave more me of an idea of what area I want to work in in the future – and what I don’t want to do! I found out about the different paths in insolvency work – I was working in admin, but there are other roles that I would be more interested in.
It was a nice place to work and everyone was lovely. The role involved a lot of admin, whereas I prefer working with numbers, so I would have been more interested in a role that was more accountancy based.
However, it did give me useful experience of the financial system in British Virgin Islands, which will be useful for the future. I also learnt that networking is important, which could help my future career development.
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Do you have any standout memories from your placement?
The staff were really positive – it felt relaxed working there, not lots of pressure. I learn more from that, than from being under lots of stress. Some staff had followed the same pathway as me – and have shared their advice on what to do next. I got lots of mentoring as part of the internship. We also went on a sailing trip for a work event, which was really enjoyable.
Why did you choose to study at BCU?
I find the teachers to be really friendly and approachable, and they have mentoring approach. They care about our progress. I have a child, so I needed to be able to fit my studies around my caring responsibilities, and the BCU course offered that. I also like the course content.
What are your career aspirations after graduating?
There are lots of options with Accounting and Finance. I am thinking about being an entrepreneur. I work for AGE UK part-time, so I might continue with that and start my own business on the side. Or possibly join a management company – I’m still exploring my options.
What advice would you give to students considering a placement?
Take the placement, even though it’s not in your field – you might like it, you might not, but take the chance.
Take every opportunity as a stepping stone. Make the most of it. Don’t settle for your desired field. Try something new and network. Networking is important.