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Summer jobs
The lowdown on summer jobs and work experience.
Where to find a summer job:
- Visit your local youth centre, careers centre or job centre (usually in Citizen's Information Centres). They provide information on training opportunities, university and college courses, job vacancies, apprenticeships, working in Europe and advice on finding the right job for you.
- Keep an eye on job vacancies in local and national papers. Also, check notice boards in supermarkets and cafes.
- Visit a recruitment agency, give them your CV and tell them what sort of work you’re interested in. Recruitment agencies are paid by the companies looking for employees, so they won’t charge you anything.
- Tell everyone you know that you’re looking for work; they might just have a useful contact that will get you started.
- Call into companies and organisations that you’re interested in working for. Ask for an appointment with the recruitment manager, bring your CV and tell them that you’re looking for employment.
- Look at the hot links page. There you’ll find lots of useful contacts to help get that perfect job!
What summer jobs are available?
Just some of the possible jobs to look out for are:
Babysitter - If you are responsible and like children, then babysitting is a great summer job.
Shop assistant - It might be the local supermarket or your fave music store. Shops are often looking for part-time staff. Ask in-store about job possibilities.
Waiting and kitchen staff - Restaurants and cafes usually take on extra summer staff. It can be hard work, but there’s usually tips to make you smile at the end of the day!
Hotels - There are loads of job possibilities in hotels, especially when they’re extra busy in summer. Working in the kitchen or restaurant, cleaning, gardening, pool attendant and receptionist are all good options.
Office work - Temporary office work can mean you find yourself doing anything from creating databases to making coffee. Make sure to ask about your responsibilities in the interview!
Lifeguarding/pool attendant - If you have a lifeguard qualification, look for work with your local pool, hotel pools and the nearest beaches.
Be your own boss! - Take the initiative and work for yourself this summer. You could offer to work in your neighbours’ gardens, run errands for people, clean or do light work in homes or use your creativity to make jewellery or summer clothing. You could even sell your artwork!
Work experience:
- Work experience is one of the best ways to find out what sort of work you enjoy. However, make sure to find work experience in the type of job you are interested in.
- Apply to lots of different companies and organisations when looking for work experience. Tell them what type of job you’re interested in and when you’re available for work experience.
- Some work placements are paid, some aren’t. It depends on the job.
- Before you start work experience, check the hours you’re supposed to work, what you should wear and who your contact person is at the company or organisation.
- When you start ask about exactly what jobs they expect you to do.
More stuff to help you sort that job:
- Worried about the interview? Check out the interview factsheets- covering everything from what to say to how to dress!
- Looking for something different? Why not volunteer or work abroad.
- Find out about what age you can work at, hours and pay.
- Don’t know what job you want? See the Job Insights section for a sneaky peep into other people’s careers.
