Computing Year 3 work experience

Clanket

Does anyone who is doing the Computing course part time have experience of the work experience module in Year 3?

I have a job and doubt I will be able to gather 600 hours necessary (Part time).

What have other part timers done?

Crash Override

Clanket wrote: »

Does anyone who is doing the Computing course part time have experience of the work experience module in Year 3?

I have a job and doubt I will be able to gather 600 hours necessary (Part time).

What have other part timers done?

Hi Clanket,

I'm currently on the Work Experience module at the moment.

Depending on what job you have you may be able to use it as your Work experience.

But now that I think about it. Pretty sure Part-Timers get exempt from the module as they know that everyone on part-time will have full time jobs etc.

Clanket

Are you a full timer?

A couple of the lads on my part time course were in touch with the work experience module coordinator and he's saying no part timers are exempt.

We all have to get 600 hours experience (which is ridiculous).

Crash Override

Clanket wrote: »

Are you a full timer?

A couple of the lads on my part time course were in touch with the work experience module coordinator and he's saying no part timers are exempt.

We all have to get 600 hours experience (which is ridiculous).

Yeah I'm a full timer.

However that is very odd.

A little while back I emailed the course coordinator about moving from full-time to part-time for my final year of the course because I wanted to try keep the work experience job after I was finished and work there full-time, however, when I emailed I got this reply:

"I’m afraid this won’t be possible as the part time students don’t do work placement, and therefore the two programmes are not aligned after that."

I also don't remember seeing the 'Work Placement' module on the Part-Time list on the website but I checked it there and it IS thereThey must have just added it this year but I agree, that is quite stupid[

nci_part_timer

Hi. I am a year 3 part timer ( as the name suggests ), the majority of both computing BSc classes got exemptions for work experience.

We were told that the part time classes would be able to start their work experience while in year 2 in future.

I think 2 or 3 students out of approx 35 didnt get exemptions.


They kinda had to give us exemptions, mostly because :-

a. some of us are unemployed and you cannot get dole and do work
experience at the same time.
b. people currently working who dont qualify for exemption simple would
not have enough hours left in the year to do the 600 hours required
considering that we have 2 evenings and a Saturday in college a week
also.

and of course how easy is it going to be to get a company to give students some night time and sunday only, work experience ?


I dont know why they are saying you cant have exemptions, the exemptions list for our class(es) are posted on the moodle site and can easily be downloaded as proof ??


hth

Clanket

Thanks for your reply. Perhaps they are getting stricter because part timers can now begin their work experience from year 2?

What did you need to do to get the exemption? Did you apply on the basis that you were not able to do it or that you had computer experience from elsewhere?

nci_part_timer wrote: »

the exemptions list for our class(es) are posted on the moodle site and can easily be downloaded as proof ??
hth

Is that a list of people who have exemptions? Or a list of things you will get exemptions for?

Any chance of sending me a copy by private mail?

Cheers.

nci_part_timer

Hi.

To get the exemption we had to prove we had worked in "IT" for the required number of hours some time in the last 5 years. A letter confirming the duration and roles / positions from the employer was needed.


If you check the MyCourses section on the nci moodle site, you will see the docs for work placement in the various school of computing courses (year 3).

they were flexible with us as some people couldnt get letters from employers as they had gone bust, but some proof of employment was required, (p45s etc)


The list i mentioned is a list of the students exemptions status, I can send a copy if you send me your email address. (i dont know if i can send it on boards, sorry im a newbee here)



I hope this helps

LFCFan

From what I could tell from the exemptions that were given to people, if you turned on a PC in the last 5 years you were given an exemption. This may change now that part timers can start their work experience in Year 2.

arleitiss

In year 3, are you given work placement? or do you have to find it on your own? In my case it's BSHC course

Crash Override

arleitiss wrote: »

In year 3, are you given work placement? or do you have to find it on your own? In my case it's BSHC course

Both. The Work placement co-ordinataor looks for jobs and all students ave to apply to them but you can also (and this is encouraged) go and look for your own.

SpaceCowb0y

Just wondering if any of the people who were on work experience over the summer who are obviously in 4th year now could give some feedback on the positions they got, what they were doing and how they got on?? I've got my placement sorted for next semester but would like to hear how others feel the experience went for them...

Crash Override

Hi SpaceCowb0y,

I have to say for me, the work experience was brilliant. You get an proper taste about what it's like to work a normal 9 to 5. I worked in IT Support for a company just across the bridge from the college.

I actually work in the IT office in the college but working for a different company was still a huge benifit. I got introduced to new/other technologies i wasn't used to.

I think the biggest Pro with it is not what you learn on a technicaly aspect but more on a personal one. What I mean by that is I found developing my communication skills to be more benifical than learning how to do x,y,z on the systems. In other words the little character building skills were a lot more satisfying to learn than anything technical.

Overall you will learn a lot! I learned way more than I thought I would and It really gave me a good idea as to what the working enviornment was like.

Just enjoy the 6 months of work, because going back to college after 6 months of just working is fairly hard =P

SpaceCowb0y

Crash Override wrote: »

Hi SpaceCowb0y,

I have to say for me, the work experience was brilliant. You get an proper taste about what it's like to work a normal 9 to 5. I worked in IT Support for a company just across the bridge from the college.

I actually work in the IT office in the college but working for a different company was still a huge benifit. I got introduced to new/other technologies i wasn't used to.

I think the biggest Pro with it is not what you learn on a technicaly aspect but more on a personal one. What I mean by that is I found developing my communication skills to be more benifical than learning how to do x,y,z on the systems. In other words the little character building skills were a lot more satisfying to learn than anything technical.

Overall you will learn a lot! I learned way more than I thought I would and It really gave me a good idea as to what the working enviornment was like.

Just enjoy the 6 months of work, because going back to college after 6 months of just working is fairly hard =P

Ah i imagine if the opportunity arises for me to stay on i will only go back part-time! I have got a fairly good placement lined up where i expect i will learn a lot so looking forward to it!

Clanket

What placement did you get?

SpaceCowb0y

Clanket wrote: »

What placement did you get?

I got a job with a web design firm!

Crash Override

SpaceCowb0y wrote: »

Ah i imagine if the opportunity arises for me to stay on i will only go back part-time! I have got a fairly good placement lined up where i expect i will learn a lot so looking forward to it!

I had the same plan but unfortunately you won't be able to go part time for the Final year. I already asked that and the course coordinator said that the part time and full time final years don't match up because the part timers don't have work experience.

I would suggest just doing the Final Year. It will be better in the long run. Have a safety net.

SpaceCowb0y

Crash Override wrote: »

I had the same plan but unfortunately you won't be able to go part time for the Final year. I already asked that and the course coordinator said that the part time and full time final years don't match up because the part timers don't have work experience.

I would suggest just doing the Final Year. It will be better in the long run. Have a safety net.

Really?? I wouldnt have thought work experience would have any impact on 4th year?? Work experience is done over second semester and the summer of third year so both the full time and part time students would be starting 4th year at the same time in September?? This makes no sense if its true!!

Clanket

Part time students do have to do work experience.

However, from what I've been told by certain staff, a lot of them get exemptions because they already have full time jobs etc etc

Crash Override

Clanket wrote: »

Part time students do have to do work experience.

However, from what I've been told by certain staff, a lot of them get exemptions because they already have full time jobs etc etc

You're right actually. And yeah msot get exemptions.

SpaceCowb0y wrote: »

Really?? I wouldnt have thought work experience would have any impact on 4th year?? Work experience is done over second semester and the summer of third year so both the full time and part time students would be starting 4th year at the same time in September?? This makes no sense if its true!!

I checked out the Part time timetables and whether work experience is the cause or not, the years don't sync up. Third years have a Module called Change management and I'm only doing that this semester in 4th year so whatever way the modules work for Full Time and Part time- they don't match up and they will have already done one maybe two modules that you still need to do.

Clanket

NCI are a bit confusing regarding the 3rd / 4th year modules.

According to the Module descriptor for Computing part time here Change Management is a Semester 7 module. However, when I log into the site Change Management is on the 3rd Year Module descriptor.

We've been led to believe in class that the Part time course is run exactly in sync with the full time course. There's no reason why it shouldn't be as we are all in the college for the same Semesters (PT also have Semester 2 of Year 3 as a work placement module).

I'd contact the college and confirm it with them.

Crash Override

Clanket wrote: »

NCI are a bit confusing regarding the 3rd / 4th year modules.

According to the Module descriptor for Computing part time here Change Management is a Semester 7 module. However, when I log into the site Change Management is on the 3rd Year Module descriptor.

We've been led to believe in class that the Part time course is run exactly in sync with the full time course. There's no reason why it shouldn't be as we are all in the college for the same Semesters (PT also have Semester 2 of Year 3 as a work placement module).

I'd contact the college and confirm it with them.

I contacted my course co ordinator last year about it and she said the course don't sync and that's why I couldn't swtich to part time. I don't think it has changed to be honest.

Clanket

That's fair enough but I just can't understand where they go out of sync?

They're the exact same for Year 1 and 2.

So why do they go out of sync in Year 3? There's no apparent reason as far as I can see.

Clanket

Actually, I can see now.

I was under the impression that the whole Semester 2 of Year 3 was work experience for us part timers. But they've got the following listed:-



And here's the full timers:-

Crash Override

Clanket wrote: »

Actually, I can see now.

I was under the impression that the whole Semester 2 of Year 3 was work experience for us part timers. But they've got the following listed:- ......

Yeah so there's 3 modules there that are done in 3rd year of part time and 4th year of full time. So it seems to be 3rd year onwards is when they unsync. It's a shame because I had the same idea as SpaceCowb0y and it would have worked out nicely.

But sure it's only One extra year and you get a degree out of it so it's definately wort it in the long run.

Clanket

It kind of makes the work experience in Year 3 for part timers look like a joke. If they're running modules during the supposed work experience time I'm guessing they're expecting very few people to actually do the work experience.