A group of Sussex student consultants helped Ridgeview Wine Estate (employer, first on the left) to identify an opportunity to reduce their waste by recycling bidules, the single use plastic bottle caps that are used to collect sediments during sparkling

The Sussex Careers, Employability and Entrepreneurship (CEE) team has been shortlisted for an AGCAS Award for Excellence in the category of ‘supporting student/graduate employability’. This award recognises initiatives that really make a difference in terms of helping students prepare for life after graduation.

The University of Sussex has been nominated for providing 1200 quality work experience opportunities to students every year through the Career Lab and Entrepreneurship programmes.

The Career Lab was co-designed with Student Connectors in 2020. It is a menu of opportunities – open to all students – to build skills and connections through work experience. Students can select from four different options:

• in-region internships – 6-8 weeks working for a local business
• global online internships – 4-6 weeks remote-working for a business outside the UK
• on campus research internships – 8 weeks working for a Sussex research team
• student consultancy – 4 weeks in a multi-disciplinary team addressing a live challenge for an employer client.

All internships and student consultancy opportunities pay the Real Living Wage and offer flexible hours, enabling students to work around their academic timetable and other commitments. 

To host work experience through the Career Lab, employers must undertake disability empowerment training, delivered by expert partner EmployAbility. These training sessions are designed to promote equity and inclusion during the recruitment process and in the workplace. The goal is to create a positive experience for both employers and students.

Alongside the Career Lab, the CEE team also run the Sussex Entrepreneurship Programme as a "create your own" work experience option. Students are supported to generate an idea, then test and build their own startup, social enterprise or creative project. Graduate employers value the skills and mindset developed through this entrepreneurial activity, such as creative problem-solving, proactivity and resilience.

A central goal of these programmes is to empower students to drive positive environmental change. The University places strategic importance on environmental sustainability, actively seeking employers who align with Sussex values and prioritising opportunities with a sustainability focus.

For instance, one of our student consultancy projects was recently showcased in Waitrose magazine (see page 3) for helping Ridgeview Wine Estate on their journey towards carbon neutral.

Additionally, the Sussex Entrepreneurship Programme integrates social impact learning and incentives. Last year, 93% of businesses generated through the program addressed one or more UN Sustainable Development Goal in their vision and objectives.

HESA’s most recent Graduate Outcomes Survey showed students who had completed work experience through the Career Lab or self-created work experience via the Sussex Entrepreneurship Programme had better chances of positive outcomes (such as securing a graduate job or place on a postgraduate study course). Additionally, participants in these programs showed accelerated career readiness compared to their peers.

Emily Huns, Head of Careers, Employability and Entrepreneurship, said: “We are proud to be shortlisted for this award. Our nomination reflects the Sussex commitment to empowering students through (fair) access to a very diverse range of work experience. To be running these programmes at such scale now is testament to the focused work of our team over several years, and to long-term collaboration with over 1000 external partners. Through a focus on sustainability, Sussex interns and consultants become agents for positive change in our region”.

Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony, taking place during the AGCAS Annual Conference in Sheffield, on Monday 10 June 2024.