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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jun/23/work-experience-site-myinternswap-locks-out-less-privileged
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| Work experience swap site 'locks out less privileged pupils' | Work experience swap site 'locks out less privileged pupils' |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A new website billing itself as “the new old boys’ network” and which helps parents swap work experience placements for their children has been criticised for potentially excluding less privileged families from the most attractive opportunities. | A new website billing itself as “the new old boys’ network” and which helps parents swap work experience placements for their children has been criticised for potentially excluding less privileged families from the most attractive opportunities. |
| MyInternSwap.com facilitates direct family-to-family exchanges of internships for 15 and 16-year-olds. It charges members £24 for an annual subscription. | MyInternSwap.com facilitates direct family-to-family exchanges of internships for 15 and 16-year-olds. It charges members £24 for an annual subscription. |
| Through the site, parents are currently offering placements at the BBC, ITV, HSBC, Ted Baker, an embassy and the Royal Navy. | Through the site, parents are currently offering placements at the BBC, ITV, HSBC, Ted Baker, an embassy and the Royal Navy. |
| There are also placements abroad on offer, including with an architect in Paris, an aviation engineer in Singapore, an IVF specialist in Israel and a bookshop in New York. | There are also placements abroad on offer, including with an architect in Paris, an aviation engineer in Singapore, an IVF specialist in Israel and a bookshop in New York. |
| Some of the companies on the site’s listings, however, have strict work experience placement procedures. The BBC careers website, which has an application window four times a year offering two-week placements to successful candidates, said they were looking into the website. | Some of the companies on the site’s listings, however, have strict work experience placement procedures. The BBC careers website, which has an application window four times a year offering two-week placements to successful candidates, said they were looking into the website. |
| Although myInternSwap mainly targets people looking for work experience while still at school, some placement offers are from students in their mid-20s. One 25-year-old looking for experience in law has put up an offer in the energy sector. | Although myInternSwap mainly targets people looking for work experience while still at school, some placement offers are from students in their mid-20s. One 25-year-old looking for experience in law has put up an offer in the energy sector. |
| The site’s founder, Nick Simmons, who runs a design agency in Notting Hill, said he came up with the idea when his daughter Izzy told him her schoolfriend Marina was looking for work experience in design. | The site’s founder, Nick Simmons, who runs a design agency in Notting Hill, said he came up with the idea when his daughter Izzy told him her schoolfriend Marina was looking for work experience in design. |
| “Finding a placement is often down to who you know, but not everyone has those sorts of connections,” Simmons said. “I agreed to give Marina a placement, and by way of saying thank you her mother found Izzy experience at the thinktank where she worked. | “Finding a placement is often down to who you know, but not everyone has those sorts of connections,” Simmons said. “I agreed to give Marina a placement, and by way of saying thank you her mother found Izzy experience at the thinktank where she worked. |
| “It’s a tool we hope will kick the old boy network into touch and help democratise the process of securing valuable work experience. This is not a zero-sum game, and myInternSwap is not cannibalising a fixed pool of placements.” | “It’s a tool we hope will kick the old boy network into touch and help democratise the process of securing valuable work experience. This is not a zero-sum game, and myInternSwap is not cannibalising a fixed pool of placements.” |
| He added: “We want to debunk the myth that only white-collar, highly paid jobs can provide good work experience.” | He added: “We want to debunk the myth that only white-collar, highly paid jobs can provide good work experience.” |
| Placements with a taxi driver, seamstress and mechanic are also on offer. | Placements with a taxi driver, seamstress and mechanic are also on offer. |
| Simmons said that although his family-run website could not guarantee the degree of social mobility within the site, “the opportunities are there. It’s a start.” | Simmons said that although his family-run website could not guarantee the degree of social mobility within the site, “the opportunities are there. It’s a start.” |
| There has been criticism, however, that it may help reinforce a situation where teenagers whose parents do not work in sought-after professions miss out on such opportunities. | There has been criticism, however, that it may help reinforce a situation where teenagers whose parents do not work in sought-after professions miss out on such opportunities. |
| Tanya de Grunwald, who campaigns for fair internships and is the founder of the careers website Graduate Fog , which first highlighted myInternSwap’s apparent pitfalls, , said that the website might seem harmless, but it was important to see the bigger picture. | |
| “MyInternSwap is a neat idea with a cute name, but it effectively encourages parents in managerial roles in desirable professions to trade CV-enhancing career opportunities amongst each other, locking out those from less privileged backgrounds,” she said. | “MyInternSwap is a neat idea with a cute name, but it effectively encourages parents in managerial roles in desirable professions to trade CV-enhancing career opportunities amongst each other, locking out those from less privileged backgrounds,” she said. |
| De Grunwald said the site was digitising a practice that had been happening for years and needed to change. “In today’s tough job market, work experience is a valuable commodity so the best placements must be accessible to young people from all backgrounds.” | De Grunwald said the site was digitising a practice that had been happening for years and needed to change. “In today’s tough job market, work experience is a valuable commodity so the best placements must be accessible to young people from all backgrounds.” |
| Research by the social mobility and child poverty commission found that unacknowledged “poshness tests” at elite British companies were thwarting the career prospects of talented working-class applicants and reinforcing social division. | Research by the social mobility and child poverty commission found that unacknowledged “poshness tests” at elite British companies were thwarting the career prospects of talented working-class applicants and reinforcing social division. |
| MyInternSwap, which launched this year, has generated more than 700 offers of placements in 40 countries, according to Simmons. He said there were plans for an “orphan scheme” allowing larger employers to offer placements for teenagers whose parents cannot provide reciprocal slots. | MyInternSwap, which launched this year, has generated more than 700 offers of placements in 40 countries, according to Simmons. He said there were plans for an “orphan scheme” allowing larger employers to offer placements for teenagers whose parents cannot provide reciprocal slots. |
| Simmons said the website would be free for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. | Simmons said the website would be free for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. |