Embedded virtual work experience

Stand out with an MSc with work experience from Leeds. Get real industry experience, build skills, and boost your career prospects as part of your Engineering and Physical Sciences degree.

Gain a career edge with Leeds

The Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences ensures MSc students like you can gain relevant work experience as part of their degree.

This is incredibly valuable to employers and helps you to be career-ready. With us, your work experience will be credited to your degree, enabling you to graduate with an MSc with work experience and stand out in an increasingly competitive job market.

How it works

1) Preparing you for work

From August, near the end of your MSc, all postgraduate students in the Faculty can undertake an eight-week work experience with a company and a project relevant to their academic school.

Group of undergraduate chemical engineering students

2) A real, team-based business project

You’ll be assigned a company and guaranteed a place. Working in a team of five students from your course, you'll solve real-world business problems with your company part-time over eight weeks.

Computing students in the long room at Leeds

3) Academic and employability support

You’ll be assigned an academic tutor to meet your group throughout the eight weeks. You’ll receive help every step of the way from the EPS Employability Team and create great networks for your future.

Students taking part in the Mechanical Engineering Summer Internship Scheme, pictured in the Employability Suite

4) Career coaching and reference letter

We’ll provide tailored career support sessions to enhance your professional behaviours and showcase your skills to employers, and you'll receive a reference letter from Leeds to verify your skills.

Should you require this support, the specialised EPS Employability Team will help you find graduate roles that fit your life plan.

Already have a graduate role? Tailored support from the EPS Employability Team, alongside this relevant virtual work experience, will help you be workplace-ready when you graduate from your MSc and equip you to progress within your workplace.

Why should you take part in our scheme?

You’re at a key career point – an MSc in one of the top four most targeted universities by graduate employers(High Fliers Research: The Graduate Market in 2024).

Employers want real-world experience, adaptability, and impact. Two out of three employers look for graduates with relevant work experience because it helps them prepare for work and develop general business awareness.

The eight-week work experience offers flexibility, relevance, and value.

You get a competitive edge: in the UK, vacancies hit a new record high of 140 applications for every one vacancy last year, and this pattern is similar on a global scale.

A recent Institute of Student Employers (ISE) survey found that 56% of employers found recent graduates needed to improve their professional communication skills.

50% of employers said new graduates need to improve their work etiquette. We help you demonstrate excellent professional communication skills and workplace etiquette, and provide a reference to support this.

Finding work experience after a Masters degree can be challenging. We help you gain experience with less competition, allowing you to transition directly into a graduate role.

How do I sign up for work experience?

When you start your MSc in the Faculty of EPS at the University of Leeds, the EPS Employability Team will meet with you and your classmates during a lecture in the first month to explain the scheme, answer questions, and sign you up.

You can then focus on your studies and enjoy your time at Leeds. The EPS Employability Team will prepare your placement for an August start and change your degree title to “MSc with work experience.”

After submitting your final project and closer to the start of the virtual work experience, the EPS Employability Team will guide you through onboarding and support you during the eight-week experience.

At the end, you will write a short assignment reflecting on your skills development, which will be graded on a pass/fail basis by your assigned academic. The company will also provide feedback on your performance during the work experience.

Embedded virtual work experience