Higher Education Placement Student Review

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my placement with FSC Castle Head and I am very sad to have to leave. Choosing to complete the placement has been the highlight of my university experience thus far and perhaps may even be the best decision I’ve made for improving myself and my future prospects. However, I want to stress that this review ONLY applies for FSC Castle Head. From speaking with other placement students at other FSC locations, it is clear to me that the placement experience is massively inconsistent and varies depending on which centre you work at. I think a lot of other FSC locations see placement students as perhaps a burden rather than an asset to their team, and I believe that upper management are clueless about why students are taking on these placements and, thus, they don't know how to best optimise them for student satisfaction. There's a lot of missed opportunities for the students but also for the centres themselves. Students who go on placement are intelligent, hard-working people who could really aid a centre in its day-to-day running but sadly it seems to me a lot of centres don't realise this and don't make the most of their placement students' potential. In contrast to the above, FSC Castle Head is so successful in ensuring placement student happiness because it has created a thriving environment for placement students. Its placement students are with visiting groups for their entire stay (thus placement students build up rapport with the students, become more confident in speaking with visitors, are able to be more helpful and dynamic when assisting visitors and tutors, and become experienced and well-versed in activities due to regular exposure to them) and they are well-supported and feel respected within the wider centre team. This (and much more) is why I enjoyed my work placement so much! Consequently, I can only recommend applying for FSC Castle Head and not for any other centres.

As FSC Castle Head has a small tutor team but incredibly high demand during its busy months, I felt as though the education team viewed me as necessary to the functioning of the centre and this sentiment was actually expressed verbally by my line manager. Whenever there was a group in, I was nearly always assigned to either assist or lead their activities where my schedule allowed it. Freelancers in particular were always grateful to have somebody helping them run their activities and usually gave both compliments and useful feedback. Throughout the year, I felt as though my contributions to the centre were recognised, with good performance on my part being communicated back to me by my line manager both in our monthly one-to-one meetings but also as she saw it. I also enjoyed numerous “shout-outs” from the head of centre in our weekly Friday meetings regarding stuff I had achieved, such as securing an award for the centre by having a meeting with the auditor, but also for completing less-than-thrilling tasks such as painting the classroom block. Although there were a few times in the year when I helped clean the centre, I never felt as though this task was thrust onto me just because I was a placement student. Instead, I understood that I was being asked to help out due to the circumstances (such as illnesses causing the hospitality team to be short-staffed) and it helped seeing my fellow education team and even the head of centre getting involved in the cleaning too. Thus, although I didn’t really enjoy that work as part of my placement, I understood that it was just part and parcel of working at a field centre. Overall, I think FSC Castle Head had very supportive staff in all departments who all valued me as a fellow employee and the work I did!

I could not have asked for a better line manager! I had a monthly one-to-one meeting with her where she would ask questions about work and how I was finding it, and I felt comfortable going into those with my diary full of notes and chatting to her. I also felt as though I could go to her about any issue I was having and that she would do my best to assist me. My line manager genuinely cared about both myself and the rest of the placement students and she did her very best to ensure that we felt fulfilled and happy in our work. As for my development, I believe that my line manager was the major driver behind the positive change I see in myself both professionally and as a person. She challenged me enough to put me outside of my comfort zone but also respected my genuine limitations. I distinctly recall a conversation where I mentioned a fear of water and my line manager quickly offered to remove me from water-based activities. Although I refused the request, I think this interaction was the perfect example of her wanting to encourage my development but not at the expense of causing me great stress or discomfort. I also liked that my line manager was friendly and easy to get along with, but didn't hesitate to be firm in correcting my professional flaws, such as my habit to forget my name badge! My line manager also supported my continued university development by allocating me work-time to complete university work (when there were no groups in) and making sure that I was able to take time off work to complete my fieldwork for my dissertation. She also encouraged me to complete academic projects whilst on placement, such as surveying bees and other pollinators.

No two days are really the same when working in a field centre! The work is very varied; some weeks you can easily be working 60hrs with groups whilst other weeks you can be working regular office hours and getting on with small (but important!) centre-maintenance tasks. FSC Castle Head was at its busiest in October, May and June and I easily worked morning to evening on most of those days as a result. Winter (November-February) and late summer (August) are when the centre is at its quietest. This is very typical of a field centre where you obviously work more when the centre needs you to due to demand. Sometimes my work schedule did feel a little bit hectic, particularly when I was still new to the role, however keeping a good diary helped me navigate through the busy periods. Towards the end of the placement, I actually felt as though I thrived on the intensity.

I believe I was given an appropriate amount of responsibility during my placement. After obtaining my first aid qualification and completing “duty” training, I felt comfortable in taking on overnight “duty” shifts (where you are the first point of call on site for visiting groups should they have an emergency). I did have a serious first aid incident and multiple fire alarms however I responded to them calmly and with ease as I felt well-prepared. I was also responsible for filling in the RIDDOX (online incident and medical form) when I saw near-misses or dealt with incidents. After observing activity sessions, I was then verified to run them myself and I did so many times for different age groups and abilities. This of course meant I had sessions where I instructed groups by myself, however I felt adequately trained and had been given many pointers from fellow staff, plus a full review from the person who verified me. I really enjoyed running my own activity sessions and was glad I was entrusted to do so! For the higher risk activities that were offered by the centre (such as a high ropes course, for example), I was trained in the techniques needed to be a competent second. I was then responsible for checking the harnesses and helmets, the equipment used, and the safety of students during the activity session. I felt confident in my ability to do this as a result of excellent initial training and regular reviews throughout the year, and I enjoyed this responsibility. At the end of my placement, I was even able to completely set-up the ropes and equipment for crate stack and high ropes sessions by myself without having to ask for help, and was commended for this and my overall progress by one of the tutors! There were also many little responsibilities that I had as a placement student. There was a list of regular jobs that needed to be completed at the end of each week, plus I was delegated stores to look after and maintain the inventory for. I liked that I was trusted by my line manager to get on with tasks and to use my initiative to find work for myself; this made me feel a lot more responsible and mature than just being constantly told what to do.

Regarding the academic side of my degree, I don’t think the placement developed me nearly as much as, say, doing a placement with a consultancy might have. However, I did have a few opportunities to do tasks related to my degree such as being involved with general centre research projects (a BeeWalk survey and an owl pellet and mammal trapping investigative project), digitising town plans of Morecambe using ArcMap Online, and writing a bid for money to create a wildlife corridor. I also did get to use my geographical knowledge when it came to helping visiting students plan for fieldwork and develop their NEA studies. However, I knew coming into my placement that this was not going to be an office-based job where I would regularly do work similar to that I did at university. Instead, I massively improved upon my soft skills where I was formerly lacking. I came into placement as a shy individual who wasn’t really confident in speaking to new people or presenting in front of groups, and I left extroverted and completely comfortable leading and instructing groups. In terms of the “beyond”, that newfound confidence and leadership is invaluable and I believe it will massively improve both my university and future career performance. Although anecdotal, I believe the extent of development caused by my placement can best be seen in the fact I immediately secured the first two part-time jobs I applied to straight out of placement where formerly I would have spent a lot of time applying but struggle to stand out amongst the masses of other applicants. I believe this is because I now have qualifications that are attractive to a potential employer as well as an addition to my CV that shows my strengths as a potential employee.

I spent less than half of my time in the actual tutor office, instead either on-session with groups or doing work around the centre. However, the general atmosphere around the centre was usually great and laidback (within reason). Each one of my colleagues in all of the different departments were friendly and easy to get along with. People were always up for a chat and a laugh. There were a few times throughout the year where there was some tension, however these incidents were resolved and never detracted from the general atmosphere to the point that I felt uncomfortable or upset. I also loved all the dogs that hung around the centre during working hours. I really enjoyed when one of the tutors would let me take her dog out on tasks outside as he was good company and good fun!

My actual work placement at FSC Castle Head was very well organised. The education team leader ensured that the teaching planner and programme file were always updated so that I knew what days I was working and what activities I was teaching with at least a week’s notice, usually two or more. I also arrived to a full induction pack which helped me settle in at the start of the year. However, management from higher up was not as organised and was inconveniencing at times. I applied to the FSC in April which was quite late as they usually close their applications at the end of January and have their potential candidates come to a group interview/assessment day shortly after. Instead, I bypassed this as they’d reopened applications for three centres (Malham Tarn, Margam Park, Castle Head) and I received an email forwarded by the careers centre at my university, which I then responded to and applied for one of the placements. When I got accepted for an interview, I was a bit surprised when the interviewer told me that I was applying for either a placement at Epping Forest or Castle Head and not the two other centres that were listed on the email. This was disappointing at the time as Epping Forest was not a reasonable placement for me personally (due to it being a non-residential placement in London) and thus I only had one option. I’d also originally wanted to work for Malham Tarn so was initially upset that it was no longer an option. Although I would not change my decision to work at Castle Head whatsoever now, I do think that this change in what centres I could be allocated to could have been better communicated to me before I had my interview. Also, I started my placement in September with one other student, whereas placement students from the other centres all started in July or August. I initially received an email from head office saying that they wanted me to go to Safety Week with the other placement students in August, however they then later retracted this and said that I would go to a different safety week much later in October. As a result of this, I did not get to meet the other placement students until Welcome Week in September, and consequently I felt a little alienated as the others had already had a lot of time to chat and bond. I also found it frustrating to have to wait till October to complete Safety Week as it meant I spent nearly all of my first two months unable to be left alone with groups or to assume responsibilities expected of me (such as duty) as I was not first aid trained. I did complain about this to somebody who was responsible for overseeing placement students and I was told that this was an unusual one-off occurrence, however.

I felt heavily invested in by both the FSC and Castle Head. I was given thorough first aid training and water safety training, with valid qualifications to prove that. I also benefited from some professional training from the technical advisor for our centre in belaying and climbing rope set-up, but also informally through the highly experienced tutors and freelancers that visited the centre who were always enthusiastic to teach me new skills in canoeing and climbing as well as leadership of course! There was also the opportunity for me to go on one of the FSC's courses of my choice (places permitting) which I thought was a nice perk!

I would happily work for Castle Head again, whether in a permanent role as a tutor or as a freelancer! I think I would consider working for other centres too.

In total, there were four placement students and we all lived in the staff flat on-site. We all got along really well and I believe that I have formed lifelong friendships with them. Having a group of fellow placement students made for a great support system and also a lot of fun as we would go out together for food and drinks as well as to explore the surrounding areas!

I signed a contract with FSC Castle Head that allowed me to live on-site in the staff flat. Although a small percentage was consequently deducted from my paycheck, living on-site was a massive advantage as the overall cost was minuscule, and finding my own place and paying the bills would have been so much more expensive. Plus, I was fed breakfast, lunch, and dinner whenever a group was in, and the kitchen staff ensured that I had ingredients to cook my own food when groups were not in. As a result of this, I managed to save most of the money I made on placement because I had accommodation and food provided for me at a massively subsided cost! Grange-over-Sands is the nearest town to the centre and items in the local Tesco and Co-Op were massively inflated (£4 for a frozen pizza!) so I often got the train to Lancaster and did any shopping there. Lancaster was much more reasonable and buying any extra items from there like toothpaste was cheap. I did go to a few pubs in the wider area in the Lake District where the cost of socialising was a bit more on the pricey side, however if you're buying locally-produced ales and such then you do expect to pay that little bit more. Overall, the cost of living was low due to the accommodation contract I signed, and I think it would be unwise not to take up that contract as otherwise the amount the FSC pays is too little to live and provide food for yourself off-site.

Grange-over-Sands is by no means known as a young person's place to go! There was very little nightlife immediately accessible from the centre. Lancaster has clubs and bars but we were unfortunately not able to go out on a night out as we'd either have to come back incredibly early or not be able to get home as the trains simply don't run past 11.

There were definitely opportunities to do things in your freetime, however you have to put in the effort to find them and do them! I learned to drive with a local driving instructor in Grange-over-Sands, started running along the beautiful promenade overlooking Morecambe Bay, had regular guitar lessons in Lancaster, and joined a knitting and crocheting weekly meet-up in Lancaster. I also managed to fit in a wildcamp (travelling by bus and train to get there) and, thanks to the car one placement student had, went on a few hikes in the breathtaking Lake District with the other placement students. Coming from a city, it was strange having to search for the opportunities rather than having them almost present themselves to me, but they definitely do exist! I think it definitely helps if you have a car though as sometimes I felt a little bit restricted without one.