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Students set for South East Asia experience

An opportunity to spend the summer living and working in South East Asia has been taken up by a group of º£½ÇÖ±²¥ students.

The eight students, from the University’s School of Social Sciences & Law, completed an application and interview process before being selected to take part in the six-week international work experience project in Malaysia. Four of the students will spend time with a special needs enhancement centre in Kuala Lumpur, while the other four students will be based in Melaka, with the World Youth Foundation which is affiliated to the UN.

The students, who are completing degrees in subjects relating to education, crime and investigation, sociology and psychology, will start the final year of their degree courses this autumn.

Dr Dave Morland, Principal Lecturer and International Development Co-ordinator in the School of Social Sciences & Law, said: 'This opportunity for international work experience is designed to enhance students’ employability skills and also provide a valuable intercultural learning experience. We know that employers are looking for graduates with international experience, so this should give our students an advantage when they graduate.

'It’s initially a small pilot project with the aim of expanding the range and number of international and local work experience offered to students in the next academic year.'

He added: 'We had a formal application process, to give the students the same experience as if they were applying for a real job.'

BA (Hons) Childhood and Youth Studies student Gemma Bottomley, 20, of Guisborough, said: 'I want to go into nursery school teaching and being involved in something like this will help to set me apart from other applicants when applying for teaching jobs. I’ve travelled to Africa in the past to visit schools and experience what it was like there and I have an interest in different cultures.'

Charlotte Oxley, 20, from Rotherham, who is studying BSc (Hons) Sociology, said: 'I want to be a primary school teacher and I’m interested in working with children in an educational environment. It will be an interesting comparison to see how they do things there. I know that Malaysia is a multicultural society and I expect it to be a very exciting place.'

BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies student Laura Batey, 22, from Billingham, said: 'I’ve worked with children in educational settings and I think it will help to give me that edge when applying for teaching jobs.'

Ishmael Hussain, 20, of Middlesbrough, who is studying BSc (Hons) Psychology and Criminology, said: 'I have some experience working with primary school children but I’ve really wanted to work abroad, which is something I’m really looking forward to, especially as I’ll be working with special needs children.'

Other students from across the University’s School of Social Sciences & Law are spending the summer with work experience providers closer to home, based with organisations dealing with issues from poverty and social exclusion to criminal justice and substance misuse.

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