Placements and work experience in Cambridge School of Art

Getting 'work experience' is easy, isn't it? Just pick up your brush or sit down with your design software and create something wonderful.

But the real working world is increasingly competitive, and the kind of skills and experience you need to stand out as an employee, or succeed in self-employment, involve many different transferable abilities. It also helps to have a contact or two in the art and design industries, who already see your potential.

As one of our Cambridge School of Art undergraduates, you'll have the chance to find a work placement on our 'Working with the Creative industries' module, or take an optional placement year, as well as discovering opportunities to gain crucial experience, skills and exposure through industry-led activities such as live briefs.

Case studies

Learn more from our students who have taken part in placements or Live Briefs, and the employers that provided them. You can also find more information on the ARU Live Briefs page, including our BA Animation and Illustration students' work for Provide CIC and BA Illustration students' project with Jesus Green Lido.

Know Violence Against Women Campaign

Illustration students' live brief with Cambridgeshire Constabulary

Headway Cambridgeshire

Illustrating the IMPACT of World War 1

Claudia

How Allia Future helped shape my future

Curveball media

Nurturing talent

Camilla

Learning on the job

Joana

The benefits of working outside your comfort zone

Dom

Shooting for the stars

Tom

The importance of a client's customers

Cecelia

Finding out what you really want to do

Lele

If at first you don't succeed...

eFrame

Discovering the details of photography

Klara

Inspired by live briefs

Francesca

Insight into small business

Drench: Graphic Design placements


Discover more opportunities to improve your employability at ARU

Advice and guidance

Frequently asked questions about our work placements

ARU's Careers and Employability page

More information and useful links

Industry engagement

Our students have found placements and internships, carried out live briefs, and attended guest lectures with our partner organisations, including many top UK and international creative companies:

Animation and Illustration
Curveball Media; SookioRoyal National Lifeboat Institution; Stop the HungerPassion Pictures; The Mill; FrameStore; Studio AkaOblique Arts; Team Red DotAllia Future Business CentreCambridge Folk Festival

Digital Media Production
Cambridge Museum of TechnologyMill Road Winter FairAvans University HollandOnespacemedia; Oostor; Big Youth Group; Coast Digital; Workshop Creative Agency; Piranha Designs

Fashion Design
Hope and Aid DirectHeavy JeansIA LondonAlexander McQueen; French Connection; Izmaylova; Laura Ashley; Vivienne Westwood; Bora Aksu Ltd

Fine Art
Cambridge Grafton CentreArtspace / Cambridge Artworks

Graphic Design
University of Cambridge Museums (UCM)Cambridge Grafton CentreDrench; Filofax; Nash Matthews; Piranha Designs

Illustration
Cambridge University Botanic Garden; Social ChangeCambridge Gateway From IndiaCambridgeshire ConstabularyJesus Green LidoMoonpig; Wellcome Genome Campus; Museum of Zoology; Global Sustainability Institute; Oblique Arts

Interior Design
Cambridge Library ServicesShearline EngineeringCambridgeshire County Council; Loci Design; Monteith Scott; RMJM; Saunders Boston; Village Group Ltd; Paul Liu Design Consultants

Photography
Museum of Archaeology and AnthropologyCambridge University Library; Brighton Fashion Week; Qamra; Wildwood Festival; Headcase; Immerse Education; Acting Now