Positive JobsBridge

deasyd

Ok, so we have all heard of the JobsBridge at this stage and it hasn’t been without its controversy. There is a lot going against it such as:

• Creating slave labour
• Replacement of current staff
• Tax payer picks up the bill
• Employer gets free labour
• Blocking the creation of real jobs etc.

However, what I want to know: is there anyone out there that has done a JobsBridge scheme and had a very positive experience, learned much or even got a job with the same company or a different one as a result?

Here is my story:


I started on the JobsBridge scheme back in April 2011 (then known as the Fás Work Placement Programme) and finished on January 7th 2012.


All in all I have to say it was a very positive experience. I have a degree and two master degrees and before the placement I was unemployed for ten months. I started the JobsBridge with a Semi-State company and worked as part of their Marketing and Press Office using all of my qualifications.


I had no intention of ever going on one of these schemes. My attitude was to emigrate first. However, because of the reputation of this organisation it was just too good an opportunity to turn down. It was the only JobsBridge placement that I interviewed for and I got the place. So, I upped sticks and moved from Waterford to Dublin.



I was extremely worried money wise as I was working a 40 hour week for €188 as the extra €50 didn’t come in until August. However, I struggled on and I still had to put aside €150 a month to go with my rent allowance. Thankfully, I have no personal loans and there was a subsidised canteen at work where I always used to eat.


I have to say it was one of the best experiences of my work/educational career to date. I treated it like a normal job. I put in the hours and my supervisor was an excellent mentor and I also had the nine other Marketing and Press Executives, with a wealth of experience behind them, to ask loads of questions, should I ever need to.


I learned how to handle the media, do PR events, manage a huge website, and deal with international media, press releases and exhibitions. Additionally, I was able to go on any training course that benefited my position and the cost was covered by the company. Furthermore, I learned much more than what the job entailed. Personally, I learned a lot about myself and my own ability, the personalities around me and a lot about the work/life balance from women and men who were running a busy office plus running a home and family.


I will admit it wasn’t all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows, I was simply not able to cope if unexpected costs came my way, such as a high ESB at my accommodation etc. and that was really demotivating because I was working a 40 hour week. However, I managed to struggle on. What was also demotivating was that there was a mountain of work to be done at this organisation, but because of the embargo on the public sector there was no chance of this JobsBridge turning in to a real paying job. I made a lasting impression and if it was three/four years ago I would have certainly been offered a position.


Fast forward nine months and two weeks later and I have my first job with a great marketing company in Dublin. I start next Monday. I went through a series of interviews for this position over the Christmas period and I got the position. It’s all very exciting.


I believe I got the position because I had almost a year on my CV with a very reputable company (no-one needs to know it was a JobsBridge) and I believe that was a massive help in getting the job. I finally have my confidence back. I believe that I have paid my dues and that life is starting to look up.


On leaving the organisation my Division gave me a massive send off with a meal a drinks, I got a speech from the two managers and some of the other executives that I worked closely with. I have to say the lovely encouraging things that they said about me shocked and really touched me. I had no idea how highly they regarded me and it was so moving. It gave me the boost and confidence to achieve anything.


In hindsight, I believe that at the moment and the state of the economy that the JobsBridge is a good thing. It certainly beats staying at home and I am one million times better career wise and happier in myself than I was this time last year. Until something better comes along I encourage graduates to take this opportunity right away, but be wise with who you choose to do it with.


So everybody, please share your experiences of the JobsBridge here. I’d love to hear…

Bondvillain

Moved from Cool Vids.

Mods, feel free to designate as appropriate if placement incorrect.

starlit

Congrats on your positive experience with jobbridge. Wow, two Master Degrees. May I ask what were these Masters? Delighted your work placement has been a success for you.

It must have been hard moving from Waterford to Dublin, I have been a bit concerned if I moved to Dublin just on that much though. While the Munster area in particular Cork would be slightly more manageable on that amount than Dublin. How did you manage to afford rent, bills and food? Did you rely on public transport or had you your own? Did you have to share accommodation or did you stay in digs/student accommodation? Just be very interested to know as I am from down the country but worked in a paid work placement in Dublin a few years ago and was easy enough to manage costs of living away from home.

I have looked into job bridge myself but no success of an interview with any of those job bridge posts relevant to my degree and Hdip. I have hoped I get to do them before considering a Masters or emigrating.

You've got the work experience its a stepping stone in the right direction. So basically get your foot in the door into Marketing. Did you have to deal with things like social media and digital marketing or was it generally sales, marketing research and pr?

Congrats on getting a new job! I am sure it is exciting and hopefully your career path be very fruitful! Well done!

It's a great feeling when you are highly regarded and respected like that when leaving an organisation, it will stand to you and it will stay with you!
It will remind you also how much people appreciated your hard work. You left the organisation with dignity and pride and on a high which is good! Gives you the motivation and confidence to do well!

Thanks for the great advice, I would definitely look into reputable companies.

Congrats again OP

AnnyHallsal

That's a great example of JobBridge working exactly as it was intended.

Congratulations on the job and more importantly - the salary!

RATM

deasyd wrote: »

In hindsight, I believe that at the moment and the state of the economy that the JobsBridge is a good thing. It certainly beats staying at home and I am one million times better career wise and happier in myself than I was this time last year. Until something better comes along I encourage graduates to take this opportunity right away, but be wise with who you choose to do it with.

That's it in a nutshell, successful internships rely on good faith being present on both sides from beginning to end. The employee needs to be clear on whether or not there is a chance of paid employment once they've proved their worth. People going for Jobbridge placements really need to do their due diligence on the company, just in the same way the companies' recruiters do their due diligence on applicants before offering any position.


I get asked by clients to do graduate recruitment in marketing several times a year so I'd have a reasonably good grasp on this sector, specifically in the Dublin market. From CV's I receive and candidates I interview I've slowly built up a pretty good picture on companies in Dublin who are churning over interns and others who are offering paid positions at the end, subject to performance. Applicants first need to decide what it is exactly that they expect from doing an internship. Is paid work with the employer your only goal or would you be equally satisfied with the experience alone that will then hopefully lead to a different paid job? .

Once you've established that then research is your friend and Linkedin is your tool. If you want to know what doing an internship is like in, say for example, Google then the best way to find out is to ask people who have done one in Google. Take this simple search string and paste it into Google, replacing only "google" for the company you're researching:

site:ie.linkedin.com (intern OR internship AND "google") (inurl:in OR inurl:pub) -inurl:dir

Putting that into Google gives you search results of the 1,200+ Irish based people who have the words intern/internship + Google contained within their profile page. By reading the profiles you'll quickly find people who have been interns at Google. From there you need to reach out and politely ask if they'd mind you asking a couple of questions about doing an internship at the company. People are generally good and helpful and will more often than not try to be of assistance, provided you're not machine gunning tons of questions at them. Keep it short, sweet & succinct; just enough questions to establish the crucial bits of information that will determine whether an internship at Google is for you or not.

I'd always encourage graduates without relevant industry experience to consider doing an internship to gain that important first step. Over the last year in business I've placed more than 10 graduates with 7 of them now working in paid employment as digital marketers and the other three becoming paid within the next 8 weeks. All of them have had a positive experience and the companies are so happy with how they've worked out that we're currently recruiting another three graduates this side of Paddy's Day. Once graduates get 18-24 months under their belts they'll be in a pretty good position to move to bigger companies and into more specialised areas. With that comes career progression and salary increases too.

But in order for an internship to be successful you need to go into it with your expectations known and your eyes wide open as to what you're going to achieve out of it in terms of training and further opportunities. Research is definitely your friend here, so go use it. The people who went along the intern path before you are out there and are a resource full of first hand experience that is invaluable in helping you to draw your own conclusions before you decide to apply for the position. Do that and you won't go far wrong.

Xenophile

The time and energy the above posters have put into making and sharing such a positive response is encouraging. I hope it will give heart and be very useful to others seeking work.

A day or two ago I heard someone in the media say............." If you are looking for work make that your job, work at it from 8.00 a.m. every morning."

pog it

deasyd wrote: »

I believe I got the position because I had almost a year on my CV with a very reputable company (no-one needs to know it was a JobsBridge)

Well done to you! Hard work always pays off! The only thing I want to ask you is if you aren't putting it down as JobsBridge, and you weren't getting paid, won't they see that on your P45?

Have you at least said that this job was work experience, and were you asked in your interview how much you got paid in your last position?

DBDH

Well done deasyd

I'm actually in quite a similar situation (but completely different profession). I've a few years professional experience before I returned to college to do a Masters - once I'd finished, I knew there was little to no chance to find decent paid employment in this country and was resigned to emigration. Personal circumstance dictated that I couldn't emigrate right away and after three months job seeking I started researching internships. I knew it was a great chance to get back into the workforce, after 2 years in college and to put another employer on the CV.
It is critical that job seekers do their research regarding internships - just as other posters have said, research is key to getting the appropriate internship that you will gain meaningful experience from. You have to be able to read between the lines of the JobBridge advert, do some research on the company that is advertising and determine if you're going to gain anything from the experience.
In my case, I jumped at the chance to apply for an internship with my employer as I knew their reputation, their company structure and a reference from them on my CV would enhance my professional skills and improve my skillset.
I'm now four months in and gaining valuable experience, making great contacts and will be proud to have this 9 months work experience on my CV.
I won't lie though, it is a tough lifestyle, you are in a working environment - living on very little money. You have to budget carefully, bring packed lunches, organise your life and pray that there isn't an unexpected bill around the corner.
I feel that my age and previous work experience meant that I knew what I was getting myself into, I knew what I wanted from my internship and was able to get myself into the position to benefit from it. Inexperienced graduates, eager to get into the workforce, need to be careful that they get an internship that will go towards improving their professional skills and hopefully help them in getting employment in the future.

I am a little concerned that the OP says noone needs to know that the experience listed on their CV was a JobBridge internship - this is one the major problems I have with the scheme - if the scheme is flooded with poor quality internships and employers looking to exploit free labour, then the reputation of the JobBridge scheme is ruined and having a JobBridge internship on your CV is devalued. Doing an internship is not something to be embarrassed about - it shows the company they're dealing with a proactive, hardworking individual and should only impress most employers.