Short-Term Student-Led Consultancy Placements: A Benefit for Employers and Solution to the Challenges of a Year in Business?

A year in business with a larger organisation has been the traditional approach to providing a placement route into work experience for undergraduates and postgraduates within business schools. It is generally accepted that this work experience placement provides personal, professional and academic benefits to the placement student. However, the value and outcomes for the placement employer have received less focus; some benefits have been recognised but only at a headline level.
Now that a year in business is becoming less attractive for students and a challenge for employers, a short-term placement programme has been established at Worcester Business School in which students undertake a specific tailored project within the Student-Led Consultancy Placement Programme. These short-term work experience placements focus on environmental impact reduction for smaller employers. This was chosen for the student-led consultancy focus as Worcester Business School is located within a region dominated by SMEs. Environmental management is a known skills gap for them, and students will need environmental management knowledge and skills in their future workplaces. These placements that are designed to provide a less challenging route into work experience, one that can encourage them to explore career options in a real-world business environment. It also provides businesses with an affordable, skilled resource to complete an improvement project.