De Montfort University (DMU) in Leicester is offering
£1500 internship grants to companies looking to recruit a
recent graduate.
The Graduate Internship Programme, funded by the Higher
Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) as part of the
Backing Young Britain scheme, started in September 2009. It is
designed to assist the increased number of unemployed graduates and
support the Government's priority sectors/themes for economic
growth, including small businesses.
DMU's Student Services team is administering and managing the
delivery of 370 internships across the region by the end of 2010 in
partnership with East Midlands Universities Association (emua),
East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and higher education
institutions in Leicester, Lincoln, Loughborough, Nottingham,
Derby, Northampton and The Open University. Funding for the
programme is only available for a limited period (end of December
2010).
DMU has already placed over 100 graduates through internships
since last year and is offering companies who would still like to
apply for a grant of £1500 towards interns' wages to do so
before funding runs out.
To be eligible for the grant, a company must have less than 50
employees or fit into one of the following sectors:
low-carbon products and services
digital industry
life sciences and pharmaceuticals
advanced manufacturing
professional and financial services
engineering construction
Industrial opportunities presented by the ageing society.
Simon Collins, human resources manager at Caterpillar, has hired
graduates on a permanent basis as a result of using the internship
scheme. He said: "Caterpillar Building Construction Products was
delighted to be able to provide opportunities for DMU graduates to
gain work experience at our facility based in Desford,
Leicestershire.
"DMU provided us with a pool of candidates from which to select
graduates to work for us on a six month internship. The quality of
graduates was very good and resulted in us hiring two of the
graduates to permanent positions within the Business. The scheme
provided us with a low-risk method of sourcing graduate-calibre
candidates at a time when the business' recruitment programme was
still subject to the restrictions implemented during the economic
crisis."
Creative-i Ltd, based in Leicester, has also been working with
graduates through the internship programme. Managing director
Rickin Bilimoria said: "The internship candidates have proven to be
valuable assets to the company. Their drive, determination and
innovation have been welcomed by the team at Creative-i."
Lisa Naik, Graduate Internships Project Co-ordinator at De
Montfort University, said: "Businesses that have not been in a
position to recruit graduates due to financial constraints have
been able to do so with the help of the internship grant. They have
also gained access to the skills of recent graduates without the
usual costs of recruiting. In addition, the scheme gives
graduates the opportunity to enhance their career prospects and
gain experience in the working world."
De Montfort University has a wide pool of enthusiastic graduates
with business, design, engineering, IT, legal and marketing skills.
Their knowledge and expertise is being put to good use to support
the region's businesses during the current challenging economic
times.
Any companies interested in taking on a graduate through the
scheme can contact Lisa Naik on 0116 257 7599.