Getting Day 1 of an industry placement right will help the student feel safe, secure, motivated and able to thrive during their time with you. It is a chance for the student to meet their supervisor and mentor (if there is one), get to know their surroundings, learn a bit more about your organisation, understand their role in it, and see how they fit in.
Aim for a relaxed, but appropriately formal, day. The student will be forming first impressions, so build in time for them to sit back and take stock. There is no set structure for a Day 1 — use this checklist to decide what will work for your organisation.
Placement details
| Student’s name | |
|---|---|
| Student’s line manager | |
| Employer organisation | |
| Placement start date | |
| Placement end date |
Induction checklist
| Focus | Content | Done? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Placement | Development objectives and learning goals | ||
| Roles and responsibilities | |||
| Day-to-day workplan | |||
| What will be covered in the first few days | |||
| Access | Issue security or ID badges | ||
| Provide and test computer login details | |||
| Relationships | Meeting with key people, including supervisor and mentor | ||
| How supervision and mentoring will work | |||
| Introductions to colleagues and their roles | |||
| Structure of sections, departments, etc. (e.g. with an organisational chart, if available) | |||
| Organisation | Understanding what the organisation does | ||
| Understanding how it fits into the locality, and into the wider sector / industry | |||
| Orientation | Tour of the site or premises | ||
| The location of toilets, canteens and vending machines or other facilities, local shops, restaurants / cafes etc. | |||
| Where they will usually work | |||
| Consider a team “getting to know you” lunch or similar small event | |||
| Standards and rules | Dress code, if any | ||
| Normal start, finish and break times – and reasons for any exceptions to these | |||
| Use of mobile phones and social media | |||
| Appropriate language | |||
| Time-keeping | |||
| Absence self-reporting | |||
| Confidentiality and GDPR matters | |||
| Health and safety | Who to contact in different types of emergency, and how to contact them | ||
| Fire and similar alarms or tests | |||
| Exits, muster-points and evacuation procedures | |||
| Safe working practices | |||
| Safety equipment: location and use | |||
| Lifting and handling, and related practices | |||
| First aid | |||
| Safeguarding | |||
| Accident / incident reporting procedures | |||
| Progress and feedback | When and where progress meetings will happen | ||
| What these meetings will cover – e.g. feedback, issues, priorities, targets, achievements, next steps | |||
| Feedback on the recruitment process | |||
| Other (add your own content) | e.g. align student induction with your usual staff induction | ||
| e.g. include content specific to the student’s role or your industry |
A printable Word version of this checklist is attached to the original article in the knowledge base.
