The Pros and Cons of Work Experience

632 Words2 Pages

Advantages and Disadvantages of Work Experience

The work experience program was developed and introduced to school

students as a means of providing teenagers with valuable experience of

the world outside of school. This is considered particularly important

at this stage as, after completing the GCSE syllabus many students

will be thinking about moving into a career, and they may be surprised

to find out just how different working life is to school life. The

scheme usually lasts for a two week period and enables students to

gain a first hand insight into the routine problems and challenges

faced at work.

Developing your ability to work with adults as part of a team is a key

skill which work experience identifies. By doing this you can help

build your self-confidence and self-esteem. This also can help improve

your maturity, initiative and decision making skills.

I have found that work experience helps to add meaning to your school

studies and enables you to clearly distinguish which qualifications

will become useful in later life.

Work experience can also provide opportunities for students to gain an

insight into business practises and processes which many students will

have never experienced. Similarly it enables you to find out how

businesses are organised and run.

Another valuable lesson gained from work experience is learning the

position of management within a company. It is important to know who

is boss and to appreciate employer expectations. This enables the

business to run smoothly and to avoid conflicts.

Although there are clearly many advantages of work experience upon

completing my two week placement I can see many disadvantages of work

experience.

As a year ten pupil in the work place it becomes very obvious to

members of staff that you are younger and less experienced than

themselves. Rather than treat you as an equal many members of staff

see you as inferior and so give you jobs which, perhaps, they may not

like to do themselves. During the course of the work experience period

I found myself doing a lot of running around after people which I did

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