Advice for students with disabilities

Work experience for people with disabilities

Information from Skill: National Bureau for students with disabilities

Work experience has many benefits. If you take on a work experience placement you can:

• show you have experience of being in the work place;
• demonstrate to employers that you can take on responsibility, and develop your skills and abilities;
• develop interpersonal skills;
• find out how your disability affects you in the work place;
• explore career options.

Read more about the experiences of young people with disabilities and/or learning difficulties in work experience in Skill’s booklet Into Work Experience. Visit SKILL (National Bureau for Students with Disabilities), and order a copy of our booklet from Skill Bookshop. The booklets cost £2.50 each for disabled students and job seekers.

How do I market myself?

You will need to approach finding work experience in the same way that you would look for a long-term job. It is very competitive and you will be expected to show quality and professionalism in the way you present yourself.

You will need to write an effective CV and application form, and prepare yourself for an interview. Contact Skill Information Service to order our guides Using Recruitment Agencies as a Disabled Jobseeker and Careers and Work for Disabled People.

There are organisations that specifically help disabled jobseekers, and disability employment advisors (DEAs) at Jobcentre Plus who can give specialist advice to disabled people. Also check out the Disabled workers Cooperative.

I have found a placement; what do I do now?

Before you start your work experience placement, think about what you want to get out of it, and what goals you have in mind. You should also think ahead about any access needs you have and whether and how you want to tell the organisation about your needs.

Disclosing your disability

It is up to you whether you tell the organisation about your disability, and if you do, when you do. Skill’s booklet Disclosing a Disabilty may be useful. It can be useful to discuss disclosure with your Connexions personal advisor, keyworker or disability advisor. If you do disclose your disability, this information will be kept confidential, unless you give permission for it to be passed on.

If you need adjustments to be made to the workplace, working hours or specialist equipment etc, it is often a good idea to tell the organisation about your disability as soon as possible, so that they can get support in place for you.

When you do a work placement as part of a further or higher education course, you are protected by the Disability Discrimination Act, which says that work placement providers must not treat you less favourably and should make reasonable adjustments to help you on the placement. If you feel as though you don’t get a placement because of your disability, ask the organisation to explain their decision.

For more information about this and support and funding available for people with disabilities, and how work experience can affect your benefits, contact Skill's Information Service on 0800 328 5050.

Thinking ahead - what are you Into…?

If you are a young person with a disability and/or learning difficulty, have you stopped to ask yourself what you are really into? There is a lot of talk about ‘aspirations’, but what does it all mean? Skill: National Bureau for Students with Disabilities, can help you think about it.

Having aspirations means that you want to reach for something high or great, but this can be anything - a job, a career, a course at college, independent living. Thinking about what you’re aiming for will help you make decisions about what and how you want to study, and even what to do with your free time. Perhaps it will help you choose a course, or lead you into volunteering.

Many people find it difficult to imagine what they would like to do in the future. This could be because you have not found the advice you are looking for, or are not sure about what support you can get at college, university or at work.

There are lots of organisations you can contact to find out about different careers and the different skills and experiences you will need to have if you want to go for them. Find out more by contacting Connexions or Learn Direct.

You can also talk to people you meet on work experience placements, staff at your college or university careers service, and friends and relatives to find out more about different jobs and training.

Skill’s Into... series also offers information and advice to disabled people on a range of career and study options, from going into higher education, to volunteering, work experience, law, teaching, engineering, nursing and many others.

To get your copy email info@skill.org.uk, or contact our Information Service on 0800 328 5050 (voice), or 0800 068 2422 (text). The Information Service is open on Tuesdays between 11.30am – 1.30pm and on Thursdays between 1.30pm – 3.30pm. You can also check out SKILL (National Bureau for Students with Disabilities) for other publications that may be useful, and to read stories of other young people with disabilities achieving their goals.

How can I get involved with Skill?

Skill is working on an exciting project to develop our Information Service to reach younger people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (13-19 years). To do this we are looking for young people who would like to tell us what information they would find useful and how they would like to access this. We are also keen to hear from young people who would like to share their story about work experience, training or studying. To find out more about this project contact jo@skill.org.uk