Pertemps, one of the UK's largest independently owned recruitment solutions providers, offered University of Birmingham students and graduates seven unique fully paid internships for summer 2013.
These internships took place at various offices across the country and each offered a unique experience in areas of the business such as: HR processes, recruitment and resourcing, corporate sales development, and employee engagement. Interns came from a variety of backgrounds, from politics to law and from sociology to physics. We asked these interns what they thought of their experiences:
"I've been working in the brand new Salisbury office as a resourcer, which involves helping to bring in new business to the branch. I found out about the internship through Twitter, and applied for it as soon as possible. The application process was very straightforward; a short telephone interview followed by a face to face interview, and I was offered the job on the day. My general duties during the internship have included doing web-scrapes, candidate searches, posting job advertisements, writing mailers, liaising with potential candidates and updating business information. The most enjoyable part of the process so far has been the excitement of bringing in new business with a tight deadline and filling the role. Some of the skills I have developed include strong telephone skills and professional business acumen. The internship has certainly opened up my eyes to a whole new potential career path and the opportunities on offer."
"I was a Research intern with a focus on the changing shape of the post-recession employment market in the West Midlands. The key objective was to analyse the role that employment agencies will play in helping to support current and future employment and economic growth. My internship was for 8 weeks and although originally the details said that the internship would be based in the Birmingham branch Pertemps were very accommodating and offered to interview (and subsequently employ) me in their branch in my home town Wolverhampton. I applied for the internship because I thought an internship with an award winning company like Pertemps would enhance my CV and I thought it was a brilliant opportunity for a University of Birmingham student. It also provided the opportunity to utilise skills I possessed, interested me and had the ability to enhance my commerciality and research skills.
"During my internship I used Google primarily to research for my project. I then built on this by using REC reports, interviewing Pertemps workers, creating surveys for temporary employees of Pertemps and sitting in on registration and job interviews. I also attended functions such as The Big Birmingham Breakfast meeting where I had exposure to a range of business representatives. At the end of the project I had to produce a presentation on my findings and present it to the board of directors at Head office. During my internship I developed skills such as: research skills, communication skills, commercial awareness, time management, flexibility, analysis, and professionalism. The internship has provided me with invaluable work experience and given me great exposure to working life and business experience whilst learning a lot about recruitment and its future."
Pertemps will be offering further unique internships to University of Birmingham students for summer 2014; keep an eye on our Twitter feed, Facebook page and internships website to be the first to find out when they’re advertised.