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Outstanding student and placement provider achievements recognised at the NTU Year in Industry Placement Awards 2022

On Wednesday 19 January 2022, colleagues from across the university were delighted to be back on-campus, alongside students and employers, to celebrate the Year in Industry Placement Awards.

Presentation Slide - Welcome to the Year in Industry Placement Awards 2022

After almost two years of virtual events, guests were welcomed back to the prestigious Courtroom, 50 Shakespeare Street, for the presentation of seven awards. The event was hosted by Nottingham Trent University Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Edward Peck, and Director of Employability, Debra Easter, who shared insight into the venue and awards’ significance and highlighted the exceptional contributions made by placement students and providers during the 2020/21 academic year.

During this period, 3,703 NTU students took up placement opportunities with 2,351 companies. Of these, we are pleased to announce the following winners:


Placement Student of the Year 2020/21 - Large Corporation (over 250 employees)

Winner: Charlotte Bradford, BSc (Hons) Product Design

Placement Provider: Antalis Packaging

Nominated by: Jason Poxon

Jason Poxon who nominated Charlotte Bradford for award
Jason Poxon who nominated Charlotte Bradford for the Placement Student of the Year Award 2020/21 - Large Corporation
  • Within a very short space of time, Charlotte made a significant contribution to the work and success of the business.
  • Just three months after beginning her placement, Charlotte progressed from assisting in the design of packaging to managing whole projects from start to finish, including visiting and presenting to clients.
  • To date, Charlotte’s work has generated approximately £0.5 million worth of business, an astonishing achievement for a placement student.

John Garner, Head of Design and Innovation, remarked:

Charlotte has been an outstanding intern, demonstrating her exceptional talent, willingness to learn, and remarkable work ethic from day one. Her positive contribution to the team, and to our business overall, has been significant. She also happens to be a very nice person! We couldn't be more delighted to have Charlotte join our team, and we are looking forward to working with and supporting her during her final year of study.

Placement Student of the Year 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise (less than 250 employees)

Winner: Zoe Parsons, BA (Hons) International Business

Placement Provider: REG Technologies (UK)

Nominated by: Paul Tasker

Zoe Parsons winner of award
Zoe Parsons accepting the Placement Student of the Year Award 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise
  • Zoe stood out considerably with her ability to manage the requirements of multiple stakeholders.
  • Zoe has always demonstrated a willingness to learn and take on new experiences. This culminated in Zoe making a number of recommendations to REG's marketing strategy that have been adopted and proven successful.
  • This proactivity also resulted in Zoe writing a blog for the London Insurance Market, on a technical subject. Paul highlighted that work of this level is usually only completed by C-suite level Executives, so demonstrated quite how much Zoe has learned and progressed in her time with REG.

Paul Tasker highlighted:

Zoe portrayed the maturity and work ethic that I would expect of an International Business student and is a credit to NTU.

Placement Student of the Year 2020/21 - Internal (NTU)

Winner: Ellie Cooke, BA (Hons) Business Management and Marketing

Placement Provider: NTU Educational Research and Evaluation Team (ERET)

Nominated by: Jenny Hambling

Ellie Cooke winner of award
Ellie Cooke accepting the Placement Student of the Year Award 2020/21 - Internal (NTU)
  • Ellie’s excellent communication and organisational skills made a real difference to the department’s project planning and research work.
  • Her contribution supported ERET to plan and launch their biggest project to date within agreed timeframes (the innovative longitudinal study, Student 2025) and to continue to provide high-quality research output during the pandemic.
  • Alongside all this, Ellie found time to proactively pursue development opportunities, achieving a Business Analyst qualification during her placement year.

Ellie was an asset to both the team and wider department over the course of her placement year and her work has been commended by the Executive Dean of Learning and Teaching and many TILT colleagues. Catherine Gillam, TILT Coordinator, expressed:

Ellie was a pleasure to work with – she was engaged and diligent throughout both processes. The tasks involved working with colleagues at senior levels, including the Pro Vice-Chancellor, Executive Deans, Deputy Deans as well as academics, colleagues from Professional Services and other student representatives. Ellie was keen to engage with any training that was offered and was confident in presenting her thoughts and feedback to mixed groups.

Placement Provider of the Year 2020/21 - Large Corporation (over 250 employees)

Winner: IBM

Nominated by: Isabela Torres Azevedo Serpentino, BA (Hons) Business Management and HR

Liz Barringer accepting award for IBM
Liz Barringer accepting the Placement Provider of the Year Award 2020/21 - Large Corporation, on behalf of IBM
  • Isabela commented that she has “never felt a sense of community and belonging like I did with IBM”.
  • IBM were commended for the extensive mental health support provided, including time off and individuals to speak to, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects.
  • IBM gave Isabela the opportunity to network with executives and directors across the world and work with the global D&I team on changing their recruitment process.

IBM allowed Isabela to grow as an individual – she noted that:

Colleagues, friends and family have commented on how much I have developed over my placement. I am now constantly seeking to come out of my comfort zone and my positive mindset is admirable. I cannot emphasise how much I have grown professionally and personally

Placement Provider of the Year 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise (less than 250 employees)

Winner: REG Technologies (UK)

Nominated by: Zoe Parsons, BA (Hons) International Business

Paul Tasker accepting award for REG Technologies (UK)
Paul Tasker accepting the Placement Provider of the Year Award 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise (less than 250 employees), on behalf of REG Technologies (UK)
  • Zoe highlighted that Paul Tasker (CEO) empowered her to put forward ideas and allowed her to take on many responsibilities within her marketing role, providing countless opportunities for self-development and growth.
  • Paul has been commended for the guidance, support and confidence he gave to Zoe throughout the year.

Zoe commented that she:

Will always value the knowledge, skills and relationships developed and built during my placement year at REG Technologies; a truly rewarding experience that I am highly grateful for.

Having both the student and placement provider from the same organisation win the awards in this category is a testament to the great collaboration between NTU students and the employers we work with. (The student and placement provider winners are selected by independent teams, without consultation).

Placement Provider of the Year 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise (less than 250 employees)

Due to the extremely high calibre of nominations, a second placement provider was recognised for their exceptional achievements in this category.

Winner: Oikon Limited – Institute of Applied Ecology

Nominated by: Katarina Miler, BSc (Hons) Biological Science (Environmental Biology)

Katarina Miler accepting award for Oikon Limited
Katarina Miler accepting the Placement Provider of the Year Award 2020/21 - Small to Medium Enterprise (less than 250 employees), on behalf of Oikon Limited
  • Katarina was given the opportunity to be involved in both conservation work and sustainability consultancy, and was mentored by zoologists, IT experts, environmental managers and business consultants.
  • In doing so, the Oikon team gave Katarina broad insight into the organisation, enabling her to realise her desire to develop a career in sustainability / environmental consultancy.
  • Katarina felt fully supported by her supervisor and was given many opportunities for professional development – including being co-author of a professional paper about climate change.

Overall, Katarina remarked that:

The whole team will encourage you to become the best version of yourself.

Placement Provider of the Year 2020/21 – Internal (NTU)

Winner: Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Team

Nominated by: Aamir Aziz, BSc Information Systems

Adam Elce accepting award for NTU Virtual Learning Environment Team
Adam Elce accepting the Placement Provider of the Year Award 2020/21 – Internal (NTU), on behalf of the VLE Team
  • Aamir highlighted that Adam provided a structured plan at the start of his placement and was supported throughout the experience with weekly meetings to discuss his progress.
  • Aamir mentioned that Adam was incredibly helpful by showing him ways to deal with issues, which Aamir notes he can use in his future career.
  • Even after the placement, Adam has continued to offer to assistance to Aamir.

Aamir summarised:

Other than the professional aspect, we engaged in different fun conversations making my placement an overall great experience.
Vice Chancellor networking with delegates
Professor Edward Peck, Vice-Chancellor, speaking with delegates.

Until next year...

The Year in Industry Placement Awards was a truly inspirational event. Nottingham Trent University would like to congratulate all placement students and providers on their achievements during the 2020/21 academic year. We look forward to celebrating the latest cohort of exceptional talent next year.

We couldn't do this without you and your commitment, dedication and support of our students.

(Professor Edward Peck, Vice-Chancellor, 2022)

To find out more about working with NTU, accessing students and support with your placement roles, explore the website or contact the team directly via talent@ntu.ac.uk.