Home Work & Study
If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.

Job or work experience - what would you do?

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
I've just been offered 2-8 weeks work experience with Cancer research UK. I've also just been offered a job with the deafblind charity, Sense. The work experience is working within their charity shops and the job is a receptionist based job.

If I go for the job, I'll be doing 20 hours per week and will have to move to Barnet, London. If I do the work experience, it'll be a 20 minute journey and is 25-30 hours per week. I would still have to sign on and job seek. If I go for the job, I can also attend college and do my GCSE English.

With retail, I'm using it more as a back up thing just in case I don't find a job within admin or IT.

What would you do?

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I worked for years in charity shops and the retail sector don't take it seriously as experience they see it as a sort of 'playing', which is bullshit really. So I'm not sure the work experience is worth it, to be honest.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Are you really in a position to move to London and support yourself on a 20 hr/week job?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Are you really in a position to move to London and support yourself on a 20 hr/week job?

    Which is what my parents said. I would get around £8k per year before tax and NI and then there's working tax credits on top.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    So have you worked out what your take home would be and if you could live off that?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I struggled in London on 11K. Admittedly I was ineligible for Working Tax Credits because of my previous salary but I don't imagine you'll get much more than 3K in tax credits.

    Sorry I realise I sound like I'm being negative about all your options, I'm not I'm just being honest!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    If you can afford it (and thats a big if, that amount of money might not even be enough for a years rent in London) then I think the job sounds better and like it will give you more useful experience.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    See Melian if you would like to opt for a job then the difficulty which you may face in getting a job is how many years or months of work experience you have in that particular field and various other difficulties may arise simultaneously which may leave you exhausted. So, I suggest it is better to opt for job experience in your preferred field first and then look for a job so that you can get good offers from reputed companies.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Anderson wrote: »
    See Melian if you would like to opt for a job then the difficulty which you may face in getting a job is how many years or months of work experience you have in that particular field and various other difficulties may arise simultaneously which may leave you exhausted. So, I suggest it is better to opt for job experience in your preferred field first and then look for a job so that you can get good offers from reputed companies.

    This!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I went for the work experience, which comes to an end next week. (where on earth have the last 8 weeks gone?)

    My boss says that because I haven't found a job yet, I should take 2 weeks break and then I can carry on volunteering with him.
Sign In or Register to comment.