Careers Service

Source: https://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/experience/internships/2ndyear/sei/afguidance/ Parent: https://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/experience/internships/2ndyear/sei/

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Student Experience Internship Application Form Guidance

In addition to the Application forms guidance available on our website, we have also provided some further guidance on how to successfully complete the Student Experience Internship (SEI) application form. You can also see our 'How to Apply' page for full details on how to find our SEI opportunities and tips on updating your CV.

Question 1

What attracts you to the internship you have applied for? Your answer should relate to the role’s description, the key duties and responsibilities or the department the role is hosted by (Maximum 300 words)

Write about specific attributes of the internship and why experience in this area would appeal to you.
Make sure that your responses are tailored to the specific internship that you’re applying to. Focus on the University School or Department that you’re applying for and articulate what it is about that place of work that attracts you – do your background research and use the job description to help you.
Make sure your answer has sufficient length – you have up to 300 words to use.
You may wish to use paragraphs, bullet points and/or headings to help structure your answer; this will make it easier for the reader to follow.

Question 2

Describe a work, University or other experience that demonstrates your interest or relevant skills gained for this particular internship. (Maximum 300 words)

Employers recruit against specific selection criteria. These are usually set out in the ‘Skills’ section of the job descriptions or job advert. Some employers require particular technical skills, but most require certain personal attributes, e.g. ‘the ability to work both independently and as part of a team’.
You can target these skills/personal attributes in your answer to this question – the employer is looking to see whether or not you have these skills/attributes, so don’t be afraid to directly quote the advert in your answer.
Whilst it’s important to talk about your most relevant experience, don’t just discount any work, volunteering or leadership roles - you may believe that your work experience in a bar isn’t important, but by breaking it down and looking at the tasks you have carried out you will see that you have developed tact, ability to work quickly and accurately (often under pressure) and take responsibility.

When evidencing the skills which you think demonstrate your fit for the role, make sure that you use the STAR technique to structure your answer:

Situation – Explain the situation in which you were required to use the skills.
Task – What was the specific task that you had to complete?
Action – What did you do and which skill(s) did you put to use.
Result – Comment on the result of the skills that you displayed i.e. what did you achieve?

Question 3

Please explain how this internship will contribute to your personal development, enhance your skills and support your future career aspirations. (Maximum 300 words)

Including this information could help establish your motivation and commitment to the internship and convince the employer that this internship will give you the experience you need to take your next step.
There is no need to think too far ahead in this section – create strong links between the internship and your plans for your final year and your next steps after graduation.
As with the previous question, use the activities included on the advert to target your answer to the specific internship you’re applying for. If the internship involves social media content creation, you could link this to a plan to work in marketing.
It’s also valid to include points about your personal development – employers understand that this can be a key motivation for applying for a role.

Additional Information

Please add any further information in support of your application. (Maximum 300 words)

Use this section to add any information that you have not covered in previous answer – if there is something you want the employer to know, include it here!
This is your last chance to really show how you'd be a great fit for the position. You could choose another of the key skills set out in the job description and demonstrate how you’ve used this in relation to previous experience or use the STAR method to provide evidence of how a certain activity/project furthered this skill.
You may also want to reiterate your interest and enthusiasm for the position but there is no need to repeat information you’ve already told the employer.

Careers Service

Careers Service

Student Experience Internship Application Form Guidance

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Additional Information

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