Securing a placement: tips from employers

Advice for applying to a pre-reg position

Careers consultant, Estanis Bouza, from the City, University of London’s careers department: When applying for pre-reg placements, remember that there is a vast array of employers that can provide placements. Every optometry student will be applying for the big ones – which is a great idea – but there are also small High Street practices that can potentially give you a placement. Don’t shy away from knocking on doors and asking if opportunities are available. If you can make it work, get out of your local area. There are large areas, such as Kent, where pre-reg placement opportunities exist, and are far away from any university that trains optometrists, and where competition may be less.

When applying, make sure that you do your research and write well-tailored cover letters for each employer, rather than giving all of them the same generic blurb.

The same applies if you are applying for a hospital placement, but also remind yourself that the environment and nature of work will be different. Reflect on what these differences are, why you are suitable, and become articulate at explaining your motivation.

If optical work experience has been difficult to secure

Bouza: One piece of advice for students is to think very carefully about the various benefits that they would gain from an on-site work experience placement as a matter of course, and how they might be able to gain those benefits in other ways.

One way to think about this is in terms of capitals or resources:

• Human capital (skills & knowledge). Opportunities to consolidate, apply and enhance the things learnt on their courses
• Cultural capital (awareness of behavioural norms and values). Opportunities to observe people and scenarios in the workplace
• Social capital (networks & support). Opportunities to meet helpful people and build relationships
• Personal capital (self-awareness & self-confidence). Opportunities to try new things, reflect, and get feedback.

Students may have to be more proactive in gaining those opportunities in different ways by being prepared to ask for meetings and advice.

This can also be helpful when presenting their experiences on CVs. Rather than just recording the experience, students should think about explaining the benefits to the employer. How has this experience increased your value to the employer by increasing your capitals?

What advice would you have when applying for pre-reg?

Martha Glain, optometry student at Cardiff University: Keep an open mind and don’t panic. If you don’t have a particular practice in mind, throw the net out far and wide. Get your name out there and contact as many practices as you can, this way you can get a clear idea of your options. Be sure to do your best to properly research and make sure it’s the right fit for you.

Think about what you want to get out of your pre-reg year. For example, if you want to go into a specific specialism, see if the practice offers low vision assessments, or glaucoma screenings, etc.

You’ll be spending more than a year of your life at your chosen practice, so it’s crucial that you are happy there. Another tip would be this – it’s never too early to do your research on potential practices and doing this could save some unnecessary last-minute stress.

The AOP’s employment team shared the common concerns they see when it comes to student or pre-reg employment, and shared their recommendations for what to be aware of, and the support available.

Are there any particular challenges or concerns that the employment team had heard from students or pre-regs?

The main concerns we hear about from pre-reg’s are around tie-in fees and leaving the pre-reg placement during the tie-in period.

The most common reasons we see students wanting to leave their pre-reg include:

• A breakdown in the relationship with the student and the manager and/or supervisor
• Students not receiving enough clinic testing time (and not gaining enough practical experience with supervisor, usually being used as an optical assistant)
• After a student becomes qualified, they often assume they are entitled to a higher salary, which is not the case. If the new salary does not meet their expectations or they are offered something better, they will usually want to leave
• A change in life circumstances, such as moving house or location.

How has the AOP’s employment team been supporting students and pre-regs?

We review pre-reg contracts and sponsorship agreements, and review the breakdown of pre-reg training costs to help push back on the fees and seek further evidence where appropriate.

Are there any common pitfalls or misconceptions to be aware of when entering employment?

It is important to consider the location of the practice. Often students move away from home to do their pre-reg and want to move closer to home after they qualify. Some students want to move to a closer practice, but do not realise that leaving the store will still cost them the full fee.

Another common misconception is that many students think they are entitled to a pay rise as soon as they become qualified. Whilst some companies honour this, the student is not automatically entitled to it after they qualify.

Is there any advice you would have for pre-regs beginning their employment?

It is important for students to establish a good rapport with their employer and in particular the pre-reg supervisor. The supervisor is their first point of call, they are there to support the student throughout the process. The company may also have a pre-reg support team who can provide support and advice throughout the year.

Before commencing the pre-reg placement, always thoroughly check the pre-reg contract, sponsorship agreement and offer letter.

Students will need to ensure they are meeting the practice’s required testing times. It is important that their practical skills meet the requirement for registered optometrists by the end of their pre-reg placement. Students should always ensure good record keeping and go through them to improve their clinical knowledge. Revise and stay organised.

More information on the support available from the AOP employment team is available on the website.

• Students and pre-reg members can use the AOP’s Pre-reg register to list their availability for a placement
• OT’s education library hosts OT’s skills guides along with archived CPD articles, covering a range of topic areas
• AOP students and pre-regs, newly-qualified optometrists and locum members can apply for the AOP mentoring scheme to be paired with an experienced member of the profession for support on a variety of topics and issues.