Work placements

As a Student visa holder you can complete a work placement as part of your study in the UK.

The placement must:

be an assessed and integral part of your course.
take up no more than 50% of the total duration of your course.

Placements can be:

paid or unpaid.
part-time or fulltime (even during term time)
in the UK or abroad (subject to attendance monitoring)

The University remains responsible for your attendance throughout the work placement. The placement unit for your school will monitor your attendance whilst you are undertaking a placement in the UK or overseas.

University’s duties

The Immigration team must report your work placement details to Home Office. These details include the following:

Name and address of placement provider;
Hours of work per week;
Start and finish date of the placement;
Any changes in the work placement details.

You must keep your School’s placement unit updated with any changes to the above whilst you are undertaking a placement.

Part-time work permission during placements

Your eVisa Right to Work details should have your work permission e.g. 20hrs per week.

Whilst undertaking a placement, in addition to your placement hours, you may work up to the number of hours permitted under your eVisa Right to Work e.g. 20 hours per week.

Immigration rules around work placements

Your decision to undertake a placement may affect your visa. Changes to immigration regulations can impact all international students on a Student visa at the University, including those undertaking placements or internships.
See examples below:

Current course and visa length	Action required from students	Points to note
You originally started on an undergraduate course that included a placement, but you have decided not to complete the placement, or you were unable to secure one.	When you have finished your course early, the Immigration & Compliance team (International Office) will report this early completion of your course to the Home Office, who will curtail (cut short) your student visa.	You cannot use the extra year on your visa to work full-time or study another course, you must apply for a new visa for this. You cannot claim a refund of the Immigration Health Surcharge. You will still qualify for the Graduate Visa or post-study work visa.
You originally obtained a visa to study an undergraduate course without a placement. However, you add a placement year later	You can apply for an extension of your student visa in the UK either before your work placement starts, or after you have completed your work placement and require additional time to complete the final year of your course.	The immigration team will issue you with a new CAS for a visa extension.

If you have any further questions please contact us or attend one of the Immigration Drop-in Sessions so we can advise you further.