Placement Experience: Youth Support Worker -Motivat8 - Jessica Amos

What motivated you to pursue an optional placement year?

As well as wanting to extend my time in Portsmouth, I knew that a work placement would be really beneficial for my career. Many employers ask that their employees have at least 2 years of work experience, and a work placement would help me gain at least one year of work experience. I knew that doing a work placement would also open up the opportunity for this company to hire me following the placement year.

How many placement applications did you make? 

I applied for two placements, one for the Trinity Suite at St Edmunds School and the other was for a Youth Support Worker at Motiv8 (my current role). The application for the role at St Edmunds was longer than Motiv8. I applied for the role and the application form took me a couple of days to complete. I got through to the interview stages. Whilst waiting to hear back from St Edmund’s, I got in contact with Motiv8. One of my friends was on her placement year with Motiv8’s Havant branch so she was able to give me their contact details. I emailed over my CV and cover letter, and I was then invited in for a meeting which went very well and I was offered the placement. I then heard back that I didn’t get the placement at St Edmund’s, so it worked very well.

What tips would you give to students about balancing placement applications with university studies?

Balancing university studies alone can be stressful enough as it is, let alone adding placement applications to the mix. However, starting placement applications early on in the year would definitely ease some of the pressure and stress as it gives you more time to find a placement and enables you to focus solely on your studies further into the year when the workload is piling up. I would recommend at least researching potential places for placement over the summer months.

What were your main concerns about taking a placement year?

I was nervous that I would not enjoy my placement and I would be stuck working there for a year, but this certainly is not the case. Working with young people was also going to be a massive step outside of my comfort zone as I hadn’t done this before, but I viewed it as an opportunity to learn and develop new skills.

How did you adjust to a new workplace environment, and what resources or support helped you during this transition? 

Starting the placement, understandably, caused me some anxiety. However, luckily my team are all very kind and have been so supportive and helpful throughout my first few months here. I settled in very quickly. I had an amazing support network of friends and family to lean on leading up to starting my placement. The placement team and my placement tutor have also been very supportive.

Any challenges have you faced during your placement, and how have you overcome them?

Working with young people who struggle with their wellbeing can be difficult as it feels like there is a lot of pressure on you to make a difference for them and some of the things these young people deal with can be hard to hear. Knowing what to say in some circumstances can be very difficult, and knowing what steps to take to help and support these young people is also difficult. I feel comfortable asking my colleagues for advice, and we are also offered a variety of training courses, on top of mandatory training, that we can complete if we feel they would be useful.

What has been the most rewarding part of your placement so far?

Seeing the impact that we have on the young people we work with is definitely the most rewarding part of my role. I supported a young person for 6 weeks and seeing the improvements in their confidence and wellbeing was extremely rewarding. One of the young people I support had been struggling with bed rotting and spending a lot of time on their phone. In one of our sessions we made a routine and after a week of them having this routine, their parent thanked me and told me it had made a massive difference.

Has your placement experience influenced your perspective on your chosen career path or field of study?

My placement has definitely influenced my perspective on my career path. In my second year at university, I did a short placement with Headway where I worked with older people with brain injuries. I loved this placement and I was certain that I wanted to go into neuro rehab, so I did not think I would enjoy this placement nearly as much. However, since starting my placement, I am pretty certain that I would like to continue my work here as a youth support worker with Motiv8. I also now know that I do enjoy working with both older people and young people. My placement has reaffirmed for me that I have chosen the correct field to work in and I could not imagine myself working in any other field.

Would you recommend the placement year to other students?

My placement has been so beneficial for me so far. I would highly recommend the placement year to other students. It has helped me develop so many skills, make connections through networking, opened up new career opportunities for myself, and it will look good on my CV. I recommend keeping an open mind, start applying early, and really throw yourself into your placement to get the most out of your experience.