The new term has brought some new arrivals to the Project SEARCH University of Aberdeen team, the one-year Internship programme supporting young people with additional needs to gain skills and experience to go on to employment.
In addition to welcoming another 12 Interns to the programme for Session 2016/17, Eleanor Davison (Inspire PTL) is also settling in to her role as the programme’s new part-time job coach.
The Interns are nearing the end of their initial 4 week orientation period and are looking forward to starting their first Internship placements to undertake a range of tasks including office work, catering, grounds maintenance, IT and portering.
The Interns have enjoyed a varied induction programme, with sessions being delivered from members of staff across the University including the Health & Safety team, the Curator of the Cruickshank Botanic Gardens, the Human Resources (Staff Training & Development) team and Academic staff in the Music Department (School of Language, Literature, Music & Visual Culture).
Heather Crabb, employer partner co-ordinator said “The Interns have settled into the programme really well and are very keen to start their placements. We are delighted that so many areas which hosted an Internship last year are continuing to work with us and it is a real pleasure to extend a warm welcome to the team at the Suttie Centre who have developed our first placement on the Foresterhill site.”
Catriona McCarle, senior job coach said “The engagement of University staff has been fantastic and we are very grateful to local organisations who have hosted visits from our Interns over the past month. The Interns have learned so much from their visits to AbSafe and Skills Development Scotland which we will build on as the curriculum develops over the coming months”.
The team is keen to encourage businesses and organisations across the North East to become involved in the programme. If you are able to offer an Internship placement, are interested in becoming a Mentor or have specialist knowledge which could fit into the employability curriculum, please contact Heather Crabb, Employer Partner Co-ordinator, on h.crabb@abdn.ac.uk or (01224) 272404.
Further information on Project SEARCH is available at http://www.abdn.ac.uk/staffnet/working-here/project-search-2431.php