This year, Circles Network hosted two Warwick student interns at their Cawston HQ, as part of the Warwick Summer Internships Programme (WSI), a University-funded internship programme that offers opportunities for Warwick students to work with a regional or national small or medium sized enterprise for six weeks over the summer.
Neelam Gill, Circles Network’s HR Manager, describes how they found the experience:
“I had recently joined Circles Networks when our CEO passed on some information from Warwick about their WSI programme, which sounded like it would meet our immediate needs really well – we wanted an intern because they bring fresh new ideas, question processes and it could lead to potentially hiring them in the future."
“The advertising process was easy to follow, so we put forward two quite different roles; one was a facilitator for our “3D Community Support” project, which offers 1:1 and group support to people who are at risk of isolation due to disability and disadvantage, and the second was for an intern to support with Business Administration and writing reports. We ran our own interviews, and Warwick confirmed our funding and provided an employer pack to support with preparation for the internship - I found the section about working with millennials particularly useful!"
“Both interns were brilliant: they were full of life, worked hard and got involved. One produced an insightful, practical report and catalogued some of our main achievements from working through our archives in preparation for a publication timed for our 25th Anniversary next summer. While the other had great impact as an extension to our facilitation team, working with the children and adults we support; she particularly liked working on our Equine Programme, involving ponies in an educational and therapeutic basis with a range of children. Both were of the calibre where further work was an option. "
“Our three top tips for getting the most out of your interns are:
- Make sure that you have a programme of work planned for the intern
- Varied work takes advantage of their existing skills, potential strengths and new interests
- Encourage them to speak up and share their ideas and opinions
“I would recommend the Warwick Summer Internship Programme to other businesses – it is really worth doing”.
For more information, please visit warwick.ac.uk/wsi. You can speak to Warwick’s Internships Development Team on 024761 51882 or via email [email protected]
