Andrew Tchie completed an internship in Nepal. Essex's Internship team coordinates placements across Essex, London, the UK and beyond.

Outstanding work to support students achieve their aspirations has led to the Employability and Careers Centre at the University of Essex being shortlisted in the National Placement and Internship Awards 2013.

The University of Essex is one of just four leading universities to be shortlisted in the ‘Most Improved Commitment to Employability’ category. The other top universities shortlisted are Cardiff University, the University of Sheffield and the University of Exeter.

Essex is a pioneer in enriching the educational experience for our students while helping them develop the skills they will need for their future careers.

Our comprehensive package includes the Big essex award which formally recognises skills development and experience; the frontrunners work placement scheme which integrates personal development with paid work experience; our hugely successful internships scheme, employability modules, international study and research opportunities, and a full programme of skills development workshops.

Our Big essex Award links in with the huge number of extra-curricular activities and workshops we offer by giving our students a way of recording all the skills and experiences they gain. Importantly this is recorded on their degree transcripts so employers can immediately see how much a graduate has gained from their time at Essex.

Workshops and activities continue throughout the year interwoven with special events involving leading business people and high profile speakers plus task-based team competition the Essex Apprentice and Dragons’ Den style Essex Boot Camp.

Our Essex team was named overall UK university champion in the Prince’s Trust Million Makers competition, after raising a record-breaking £12,000 through enterprise activities.

Our internship scheme carefully links our students and graduates with appropriate external employers, as it is vital paid placements we organise benefit the personal development of the student or graduate. The success of this approach is illustrated by the positive feedback we receive and the number of interns who secure permanent roles after their placements.

Psychology graduate Leanne Walsham is now working full-time at Black Diamond Commodities after a successful internship placement. Leanne is pictured with Black Diamond Commodities Managing Director Greg Dunn.

frontrunners, developed at Essex, is a unique placement scheme using the University’s resources to offer students the chance to gain high quality work experience to develop the higher-level skills to compete for the best jobs. At the end of the last academic year, 100 per cent of students involved in frontrunners said they would recommend the experience to a friend. This year, it was also shortlisted in the National Council for Work Experience (NCWE) Awards.

The winners of the National Placement and Internship Awards will be announced on 15 February 2013.