{"id":258185,"date":"2025-07-28T20:48:31","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T10:48:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/railuk.com\/?p=180455"},"modified":"2025-07-28T20:48:31","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T10:48:31","slug":"west-midlands-students-given-a-career-boost-on-hs2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=258185","title":{"rendered":"West Midlands students given a career boost on HS2"},"content":{"rendered":"

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HS2 is continuing to invest in local talent by welcoming university students onto a paid placement programme during the summer holidays.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now in its fourth year, the eight-week \u2018earn and learn\u2019 programme forms part of a wider drive to retain local talent by giving students an insight into future career opportunities on their doorstep.<\/p>\n

Designed and delivered by HS2\u2019s construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV), the summer scheme is exclusively for undergraduates who live in the West Midlands or study at one of the region\u2019s universities. Students leave the programme with practical work experience in roles that align to their chosen area of study, helping to boost their employment prospects when they graduate.<\/p>\n

Julie Venn-Morton, HS2\u2019s Senior Skills & Inclusion Manager for the West Midlands said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re exceptionally proud of the partnerships we\u2019ve formed with our local universities and how we\u2019re working together to help home-grown talent thrive.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFor the fourth year running, we\u2019ve opened the gates to our construction sites and offices to enable a new cohort of engineers, technicians and digital specialists to hone their skills and make a valuable contribution to HS2 – the UK\u2019s biggest transport infrastructure project.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Following the application and interview process, thirty-two students from eight universities \u2013 including the University of Birmingham, Birmingham City University, Aston University and Coventry University \u2013 secured places on the programme. This week, they begin their placements across a wide range of BBV departments, including engineering, quality assurance, procurement, IT, commercial, finance and environment, supporting the design and construction of key bridges and structures along the route.<\/p>\n

Over the next eight weeks, the students will apply the theoretical skills they have developed during their studies into a workplace setting. Former placement students have gone on to secure degree apprenticeships (replacing full-time study), graduate schemes and permanent employment with BBV after graduating; demonstrating the scheme\u2019s credibility and the reward opportunities for those that shine.<\/p>\n

As construction continues between the West Midlands and London, HS2 is now supporting 33,000 jobs \u2013 around a third of which are West Midlands-based. 710 people from the region have secured an apprenticeship and 1,870 local people who were out of work have secured employment on the project.<\/p>\n

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Naomi Bates, Skills, Education and Employment Business Partner at Balfour Beatty VINCI said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re looking forward to welcoming our new students this summer, of which a third are women and some are returners from previous summer placements.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe programme delivers benefits for HS2 by exposing us to new and exciting ideas, while providing the perfect opportunity for students themselves to earn and learn as part of a world-leading infrastructure project.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Among those joining this year\u2019s work placement programme are:<\/p>\n

Anastasia Docherty, 22, from Leamington Spa, who is studying Construction Project Management at Coventry University. She said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m really excited to join Balfour Beatty VINCI over the summer months and learn as many new skills as I can. Being part of such a large infrastructure project like HS2 is a great opportunity for any student looking to get an insight into the construction industry.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Malaika Fatima, 20, from Ward End in Birmingham, who is studying Computer Science at Birmingham City University. Malaika added:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI live close to a HS2 construction site in Washwood Heath and I see the progress being made on a daily basis. This has inspired me to join Balfour Beatty VINCI\u2019s summer placement programme, as a way of kick-starting my career and learning more about the HS2 project.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Maryam Bibi, 20, from Birmingham, who is studying Business and Management at Aston University.\u00a0 Maryam said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m thrilled to be joining the UK\u2019s largest infrastructure project over the summer, which will allow me to apply my theoretical business knowledge in the real world. I can\u2019t wait to get some hands-on experience, as I pursue a career in procurement.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Yusouf Sufyan, 21, from Birmingham, who is studying Quantity Surveying at Birmingham City University. Yusouf said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter I\u2019ve finished my studies, my ambition is to become a chartered Quantity Surveyor. This summer placement will help me to realise my dream, by giving me the experience that I need. I also have friends who\u2019ve been on this placement in previous summers, and they thoroughly recommend it!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Shan Koo, 20, from Solihull, who is studying General Engineering at the University of Leicester. Shan is returning, after completing BBV\u2019s summer placement programme last year. She explains:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI really enjoyed my time with BBV last summer, so I decided to come back again for another eight-week placement. It\u2019s a great company to be part of, and I can\u2019t think of a better platform to launch my career from.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

HS2 Ltd\u2019s CEO, Mark Wild, is resetting the project to make sure it can be delivered to the lowest reasonable cost. While this work in ongoing, HS2 and its contractors continue to make progress on the civil engineering, such as viaducts, earthworks, stations and tunnels.<\/p>\n

When complete, HS2 will improve connections between London and the West Midlands, with trains running further north on existing lines. This new high-speed railway will create quicker and far more reliable journeys, driving economic growth while crucially freeing up space for more local trains on the most congested part of the existing West Coast Main Line.<\/p>\n

For more information about careers and employment opportunities with HS2 and its supply chain partners, visit\u00a0hs2.org.uk\/careers<\/a><\/p>\n

Image credit: HS2 Ltd<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a>HS2 is continuing to invest in local talent by welcoming university students onto a paid placement programme during the summer holidays. Now in its fourth year, the eight-week \u2018earn and learn\u2019 programme forms part of a wider drive to retain local talent by giving students an insight into future career opportunities on their doorstep. Designed [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2022,16013,1089,8221,47,16148,1070,2021,16018,85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-258185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-careers","category-general-interest","category-hs2","category-people","category-rail-news","category-rail-projects","category-recruitment","category-training","category-training-recruitment","category-uk"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=258185"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258185\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":258186,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258185\/revisions\/258186"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=258185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=258185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=258185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}