Sarah:
Hi James, this is our first face-to-face tutorial in a while and I just wanted to check in with you after your work placement.
James:
Okay, it's all been really useful I think.
Sarah:
And you've been working for a manufacturing company, is that right?
James:
Yes, they make baby products actually.
Sarah:
Sounds interesting.
Sarah:
Tell me about why you chose to work there.
James:
Well, actually it was my first choice.
James:
Everybody else was applying to the software company and I thought that I might not get it.
James:
I didn't really care about the products in the baby company but what interested me the most was that it's a huge multinational company and I thought it would be a really interesting experience working for an organisation like that.
Sarah:
And do you think you made the right choice?
James:
I mean, probably the best bit of working for a company like that is that there's so much stuff going on in terms of market analysis, which I've always been interested in, but also research and development, product and design and lots of stuff that I've never really thought of before.
Sarah:
It sounds like it was all good.
James:
Well, yes, but I also think that if I'd chosen to do my placement with a smaller company, I'd have been able to make more of an impact.
James:
I just sometimes felt that the stakes were so high there.
James:
Everything involved huge amounts of money and that stopped people taking risks or allowing someone like me to have any real impact on the tasks.
Sarah:
Yes, that can sometimes be the case.
Sarah:
It's useful to get some feedback.
Sarah:
Do you think it was well organised?
James:
Oh, yes, it was great.
James:
I had a mentor the whole time who I could ask if I had any problems, so even as I moved around departments and had different managers, I always had the same person to talk to if I had any problems.
Sarah:
Well, I look forward to reading about it in your reflective portfolio.
James:
That's what I wanted to talk to you about, actually.
James:
I'm not really sure how to go about it.
Sarah:
Okay, well, I can help you with that.
Sarah:
Do you have your notes?
James:
Yes, here they are.
James:
So, what I'm not really sure about is how to structure it.
Sarah:
Well, what you need to start by doing is looking at the module handbook.
Sarah:
This tells you the knowledge and skills that you have to demonstrate.
Sarah:
If you take notes on these things, then you will have the content that you need.
James:
Okay, I'll have a look at that again.
James:
That's good to know.
James:
But I'm still not sure about the structure.
James:
Is it like an essay?
Sarah:
No, the portfolio has a different structure.
Sarah:
I don't really want to tell you exactly how to do it as there are different ways that are good for different people.
Sarah:
After organising your notes, you could go to the library and look at the student assignment there from last year.
Sarah:
It's in the section near the study skills books.
Sarah:
It was a really good example and you can get some ideas about layout.
Sarah:
I'll email you the details.
James:
Thanks, that would be great.
James:
So, do I need to choose some headings?
Sarah:
Yes, you can look at the learning objectives for the course to get ideas about that.
Sarah:
There's a list of different things which you could discuss in each section.
Sarah:
Evidence of problem solving, understanding of organisational structure, evaluation of training and so on.
James:
Okay, that's kind of clear.
James:
So, can I write a draft and then get some feedback from you?
Sarah:
Well, like all written work, I can only give you feedback on 20% of it.
Sarah:
So, I suggest that you write a couple of sections and I'll look at that.
James:
Thanks, that'll help a lot.
James:
Just to let me know if I'm on the right track.
Sarah:
Also, there's another great place to check suggestions, get feedback and bounce ideas around and that's the online forum.
Sarah:
All of your classmates are posting and can answer any questions you have.
Sarah:
Getting into a discussion online is a great way to develop your thoughts further.
James:
Yes, I'd forgotten about that.
James:
Thanks, you've given me a lot to get on with.
Sarah:
Oh, one last thing.
Sarah:
Make sure that after you've finished, you get somebody else to proofread it for you.
Sarah:
If you do it yourself, then you might miss things.
Sarah:
I always recommend that my students swap papers to look for errors and make suggestions.
James:
Thanks a lot, Sarah.
Sarah:
I look forward to seeing what you come up with.
