Hart Biologicals has extended its support to degree students in the North East, with the introduction of business internships.
According to recent research from the Higher Education Statistics Agency, 29% of UK graduates are forced to take non-professional jobs after finishing university due to a lack of industry experience.
In an effort to combat this growing statistics, Hart Biologicals regularly offers university students during their year in industry full time positions within the company, allowing them to put their new skills in to practice.
Beth Fountain, 20 from Redcar, is currently in her third year at Northumbria University in Newcastle studying for a degree in Business with International Management, and has recently begun a 12 month placement with Hart as a Marketing Intern.
Beth said: “The reason that so many graduates are taking on non-professional jobs instead of working within the area of their degree is because of lack experience. I was attracted to the university’s sandwich course structure as a way to gain relevant experience and embed my learnings in a real life work environment, both aspects you can’t get in a class room.
“Hart Biologicals weren’t looking for business or marketing interns as such, but their products really make a difference to people and the company has an amazing community spirit which I love, so I thought I’d send across my CV anyway.
“I was really chuffed to receive a reply asking me to come in for a visit, where they were really keen to chat about working together. From there we created a job description and built a role that would give me lots of responsibilities and allow me to be innovative and make my mark.”
This is the first time Hart has taken on a business intern, having previously only worked with research and development interns.
Beth added: “I feel quite honoured to have been given this business role and I’m looking forward to getting stuck in as part of a tight knit and passionate team. So far working for Hart has been brilliant. They have shown me so much respect and I feel like I’m highly regarded within the company, I feeling you don’t tend to get when you only work part time. I wake up excited to go to work each morning.
“I’ve been given lots of responsibilities but I’ve been given the opportunity to show my innovative and make my mark on the role. I feel like they trust me to get on and do a good job, and that feeling spurs me on.”
Alby Pattison, Managing Director at Hart said: “It’s brilliant to have Beth on board and her role is bringing real value to Hart Biologicals. As a company we are passionate about nurturing the workforce of the future, and it’s incredibly rewarding to see how much the students we have here on internships develop, both professionally and personally.
For Hart Biologicals to continue to grow as a company it is important for us to invest in all areas of the business. I hope to see more interns working across the company in the future, developing the necessary skills and gaining the quality experience they need to excel once they graduate from university.”
