WORK PLACEMENT ORIENTATION

Ithaca College London CenterSpring 2016WORK PLACEMENT AND VISA ORIENTATIONWhats in a name?If asked by an Immigration Officer at the UK border about your programme of study, always use the term work placement.In UK law, an internship is a full-time, paid opportunity to work for a firm as part of the firms normal recruitment process. The intention is that the firm will take you on if you successfully complete the internship. If asked about the amount of time you spend at your placement, always say that it is less than 50% of the time you are spending in the UK.You need a visa if:You are a work placement student (intern).You are hoping to volunteer or undertake community service while in the UK.You are hoping to get part-time work (very difficult)/or do work-study at the London Center.If you plan on studying in the UK for more than 6 months i.e. spending another semester at the London Center.You are a visa-national (if you do not hold a US or EU passport) please contact the London Center to find out if you need a visa email iclondoncenter@ithaca.edu).If you have a European Union passport then you will NOT need a visa. Email us to let us know what passport you hold and to check that this does in fact mean that you do not need a visa.

Please note that the cost of the visa is about $500 (this fluctuates due to exchange rate).You will work closely with Caroline and other staff at the London Center who will guide and support you through this multi-stage process. You will be required to pass certain info on to us as well as the UK consulate in order to get your visa.You MUST be very organized and be sure to read everything about the visa process that is provided to you promptly and thoroughly. There are many details, and everything must be done precisely in order to obtain a visa.If you wait too long before applying, you will need to expedite the process, which will incur additional costs of approx. $200 plus additional worry & anxiety about having your visa in time!!

More visa details4Your visa: Tier 4 (General) student visaTo acquire the Tier 4 student visa you need:(1) 1,265 ($1,933 as of 10/8) per calendar month you will be in London (total of 5,060 or approx. $7,730) . These funds must be held in a personal or joint bank account or parental account for each month & part month of your stay in the UK. (2) you must have this money held in the bank account a minimum of 28 days before submission of the online visa application. (3) Some students MAY be asked to submit official documents to prove that they meet the financial requirements. This can include bank statements, birth certificate/court order and a letter of support from your parent/guardian. Have these documents on hand in case you are asked to send them, but do not send them if you are not asked for them.(4) If you are a national of a non-majority English speaking country*, you may also need to take a language test, and you will need to submit your results with your application. *check with the London Center asap if unsure (iclondoncenter@ithaca.edu)Do we need this slide?5Visa ProcessHold your money for 28 days (if you have money in excess of tuition through Financial Services, you may hold less or be able to skip this step. Confirm with Caroline if you have an excess)Submit Certificate of Acceptance for Study (CAS) info online to ICLC using e-form that will be sent to you (Caroline will send you the link to the form soon, and then will send your CAS number)Complete online visa application, using the detailed template that you will receive. This is where you pay for the visa, 322 or $500 [approx], and make your biometrics appointment.After submitting the online application, print out a copy of it and sign it! You will need to take it with you when you go to your biometrics appointmentAttend biometrics appointmentSend complete application and passport to British consulate within two weeks of your biometrics appointment.

7What is 50-50 and what does it mean for my work placement?The UK government defines work placements as work, even if unpaid. From 1 April 2009, to prevent illegal working, students will be allowed to work for no more than 50% of their time in the UK, i.e., term time. This averages to about 2 to 2.5 days per week.They must study at least 50% of their time in the UK.We will be strictly monitoring 50-50 as we have a duty to report violations. PENALTIES for breaking 50-50: Student can be deported, IC can lose its sponsor license. Restructure this8What we require from youClarity and some flexibility: we need to know what you want, and back-ups if we cannot get what you want. While we try our best to get your first choice, sometimes it is impossible. For example, the BBC is not possible. So too are the Premiership football teams. Big name marketing and advertising firms are also difficult as their HR departments often say no. The most successful placements are generally in smaller firms that actually NEED the help.Patience: Students need to be patient. Some firms dont know their requirements for January 2016 until close to that time. Placements generally dont begin until the 2nd or 3rd week of term. SYou need to give your placement a go. Dont expect to be the Chief Executives personal assistant from the start. Placements take time to mature.Responsibility: We need you to act professionally and responsibly in your placement. You represent, not only yourself, but Ithaca, and the US as well. Your CoordinatorWe assign you a COORDINATOR, several of whom are subject specific. Your coordinator is your first point of contact. S/he will be contacting you over the summer. Your coordinator will grade your work and set the academic portion of your placement (journals, projects, presentations, etc.). They will also contact your site supervisor and monitor your progress.In many cases they will find you a placement, but if you have your own contacts and will be placing yourself, please notify the ICLC (iclondoncenter@ithaca.edu) ASAP and keep staff informed of your progress. You will need to explain the 50-50 rule to your placement site, and staff will help you clarify it if needed.All of our coordinators work differently. Some may be in contact very soon, some may not contact you until later in the semester.Your Site SupervisorThis is the person your coordinator has arranged your placement through. They may be the person you meet at your interview on site.Your supervisor may not be a person you work closely with on a day to day basis.If you have any issues at your placement, try and resolve them through your site supervisor first. If that doesnt work, your next point of contact should be your coordinator. Your final point of contact for a resolution is Caroline or Thorunn at the London Center.Edit this11The ICLCStaff assign students to coordinators after receipt of cover letter, CV and online interest questionnaireOrganize mandatory work placement orientation session during the first week in LondonMeets students at the mid-term to check in, see how placements are going, answer lingering questions, address any issues which have arisenMonitor the number of days/hours worked each week by the work placement student.

Our expectationsStudents adhere to 50-50. We now have a duty to report any violations to the Immigration authorities e.g., exceeding number of work hours, taking a part-time job while doing a placement, etc.Students take the placements seriously: This is the professional job market, we have had sackings in the last year. Students dont get placement jealousy. Students are prepared to travel outside zones 1 and 2.Difficult placement areas:Stage management, company managementSet design, props and scene paintingCostume designPerformanceAdvertisingBanking and financeOn set film and TV productionNewspaper journalismFootball clubs

Students interested in placements in these fields should also have backup fields of interest. Please touch base with Caroline at iclondoncenter@ithaca.edu if you have any questions about placements in these fields.Questions, Questions, QuestionsGeneral email inquiries should be sent to iclondoncenter@ithaca.edu Join the Facebook group if you havent alreadyits a great way to get to know other students and to get responses from both students and staff.Spring 2016 Ithaca College London Center

Immigration Flowchart for Students Coming to ICLC for Spring 2016 Semester

Option A

Students doing Work Placement (Internship) and/or Work Study and/or Voluntary Work

Submit passport details to your London Center online application. Ensure it is the passport you will be travelling to London on.

For 28 days before submitting online visa application hold 5,060 (find official conversion rates at www.oanda.com) maintenance funds continuously in your or your parent/guardians bank account (must be able to prove relationship to parent or guardian). Begin holding the money ASAP.

Submit online application no later than 18th November to be safe. BE SURE TO PRINT AT LEAST TWO COPIES OF YOUR ONLINE APPLICATION, with the page confirming your biometrics appointment. NOTE THE DATE AND TIME OF YOUR BIOMETRICS APPOINTMENT

Attend Biometrics Appointment which you scheduled upon submission of your online application. Take your passport, your printed online application, the page confirming your appointment, and proof of funds to be safe

Send everything to the UK Consulate ASAP! The Consulate must RECEIVE printed application, passport and paperwork within 2 weeks of your Biometrics Appointment. DONT WAIT THE 2 WEEKS!!! Printed application including barcode stamped at biometrics appointment; Proof of maintenance funds if asked or required; 2 photos (see guidance online for rules); Your passport (NOT A COPY)Ideally your application will be processed in about 10-15 working days (this varies seasonally)

Upon receipt of your passport check that you have been granted your visa.Show your passport AND VISA at immigration. You may also need to show other documents (proof of finance, acceptance letter). WELCOME TO LONDON!

Immigration Flowchart for Students Coming to ICLC for Spring 2016 Semester

Short-term Students [NOT doing Work Placement (Internship), Work Study or Voluntary Work] Option B

Receive Official Acceptance Letter from IC

Receive Student Visitor Letter from ICLC

Show your passport and student visitor letter at immigration. You may also need to show other documents (proof of finance, acceptance letter). WELCOME TO LONDON!Get official statement from your bank proving that you have access to sufficient maintenance funds: 5,060 (find official conversion rates at www.oanda.com)