Twelve students and graduates from Plymouth University are currently putting the skills they have learnt on their courses into practice as part of placements with the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO).
Working as software developers, business analysts, technical developers and product support technicians, the group have all secured 12 month posts at the agency’s headquarters in Somerset.
They are among just 20 placements offered by the UKHO this year, for which there were hundreds of applicants, but Plymouth University secured more than half of the posts available.
The students and graduates come from a variety of courses at Plymouth, including geography, computer science, history, environmental science and navigation and maritime science.
Shirley Walker, Head of Careers & Employability at Plymouth University, said:
“The success of our students and graduates in securing these placements is a testament to them as individuals and the University as a whole. To have 60 per cent of all the successful applicants to UKHO provides further evidence that our mission to embed employability within all our courses is creating outstanding opportunities for our students and graduates.”
The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) produces nautical publications and services for the Royal Navy and merchant shipping, to protect lives at sea. A trading fund of the Ministry of Defence (MOD), it employs around 1,000 people at its base in Taunton.
The purpose of its internship programme is to provide school leavers, undergraduates and graduates with an opportunity to gain experience in the workplace through participating in projects or tasks which support our business.
Kellie James, People Development Manager in UKHO’s Technology Division, said the interns have brought with them energy and a positive attitude to the tasks in hand. She added:
“Having an intern has been hugely beneficial to our team. I had some reservations about taking time to train someone new for a relatively short period of time, but the benefits have far outweighed the planning and introductory phase. We had a specific remit defined and they achieved above and beyond what we asked them to do.”
The UKHO will be among the agencies represented at the Exploring Your Future in Business Recruitment Fair at Plymouth University on Tuesday 03 November.
