WOHAA offers the winners of our five Award Categories* work experience placements with some of the UK’s top employers.

^{*Most Entrepreneurial Team/Individual, Most Awareness Raised/Best Presentation, Community Action, Excellence in Culinary/Arts/Technology/Sports, Most Funds Raised.}

Here’s what some previous WOHAA prize winners thought about their work experience placements:

In my week of work experience with Edelman I found out how important PR is for huge companies and how much of a positive difference a PR agency can make for a company’s reputation. I was fascinated to see that there were so many departments and how many different roles could be taken on.

As well as doing research on journalists for a Nissan launch and the history of Leicester Square for a hotel opening, and learning more about Edelman as a PR agency, I also got to experience what a work place would be like, and it was completely different to what I had expected. The staff were so friendly and approachable and the atmosphere was lovely. Everyone was so welcoming and it was really nice to have had the experience of working there. I learnt a lot and this has been one of the most valuable work experiences out of all of the experience I’ve had so far for which I would like to thank Edelman, the Wings Of Hope, and my ‘work experience buddy’ Lucy Thornton – Suruchi

I had a really enjoyable week of work experience with the branding team at Edelman. The week provided an insight into branding PR, and I learnt a great deal about this field of work and how no day is the same! It demonstrated how much work, time and effort is needed in preparation to launch an event or promote a campaign/brand. I assisted the team with a number of events for their clients, and I was shown the importance of communication and having good relationships with co-workers when working as a team to make the event/campaign effective. In addition, my confidence grew from meeting many different people and asking questions about tasks that I was unsure on. Overall, the team were lovely and open about talking about their job, making the week extremely beneficial as it opened my eyes and has made me consider the different types of jobs there are available to do in the future — Payal

CREATE Fertility are the UK’s leading Natural and Mild IVF specialists. The company is renowned and unique in what they do which is what really made them appeal to me. Almost straight away, I was put into hospital scrubs and was already in an operation theatre shadowing doctors! During the course of the week, I was able to see and do lots of things that I’ve never done before. As an aspiring medic, this opportunity proved to be incredibly valuable and worthwhile. I have learnt and gained so much over the course of the week and was able to do lots of new and enthralling things. I thank all of the staff at CREATE Fertility who made my time at the clinic both exciting and insightful. Thank you to the Wings of Hope too, for whom without, I would not have been able to partake in this experience – Trisha

My experience at Saatchi & Saatchi will be something I will never forget. As I was walking up Charlotte Street I was nervous and excited just thinking about what I would have to do for the rest of the week at this legendary company. When I stepped into the halls of Saatchi & Saatchi I could feel the creativity bouncing off the walls. In the reception area the funky furniture and the plasma screen showing their latest advertising campaigns had me in awe. From my first hour I was already consumed into the world of advertising. By the end of my first day I felt I had consumed a world of information and experience as I was made to make phone calls on behalf of Saatchi & Saatchi. The next day I was given a specific task that taught me about other advertising companies which gave me a wide range of information about brands and how they want their products advertised. I also got to go into a few meetings throughout the week, this opened my eyes to the way people work together and what the end product is meant to be. I also learnt how colleagues interact with each other.

Overall this experience will stay with me forever as I had an amazing time and with that I learnt a lot which I use in my every day life. Now I understand why Saatchi & Saatchi is so legendary, as the work they produce is one of a kind and the people who create it are true geniuses. I would like to thank you so much for setting up the work experience for me! I learnt so much and will keep this experience with me forever – Shaya

My week at Tata Consultancy Services was extremely informative and served as an invaluable reminder of the importance of team cohesion and the place of Information Consultancy in the future. The days were scheduled to perfection, with enough time left to the individual groups to get to know one another and to work on the ‘Group Research Project’, which was: ‘What will TCS look like in 2040?’ – no easy forecast indeed! Nevertheless our team – Tatasians, managed to perform a spectacular presentation which was considered the best and each member won a prize. However after giving the presentation, I strongly feel that the experience of giving an earlier presentation at the House of Lords to the distinguished Wings of Hope panel was extremely helpful in performing our presentation with “flair and insight” at TCS – Athishan

Throughout the week, employees at TCS showed us various departments and allowed us to speak to different people about their daily job and their views on such a workplace. The ‘Mission You’ programme allowed us to meet new people of different backgrounds and work as a team to produce a presentation on our vision of what TCS would look like in the future, having learned more about the company in various sessions with different members of TCS – Pujan

The opportunity for work experience at Tata Consultancy Services, one of the biggest IT companies in the world was a really valuable and interesting experience. I learnt a number of different things and encountered new things as well. One of the major new things that I learnt was the knowledge of what working in an office environment is like and what different jobs in IT are and what specifically they do. I have gained a larger insight into work at an office and it has widened my options for my career in the future. Overall, Mission You was a success for me and it will definitely be a valuable experience given to me by WOHAA which, I am sure will help me in the future – Vikrant

On Monday, I learnt a lot about the company itself and what goes on in each of the sectors within it.On Wednesday, I went to the finance department (we were allowed to choose two to go) to shadow the department and find out what goes on. The shadowing of the department was very helpful as gave me great insight into the department and what goes on there. The main highlight of the program was when we had to create ideas to meet the brief as it was the most creative part. I really enjoyed the experience overall and I would gladly take part in it again, as it was very valuable – Sujen

On Monday 27th July 2015, we took part in the TCS work placement scheme at the Tata Consultancy Services in central London. Every single day was fun-filled with many useful things to be learning about as well as working on the assignment… Whilst working on this assignment we all got the chance to go and visit one of the sectors of TCS and I chose to go to Finance. I’m glad to say that I’ve had a great adventurous week and it has been an amazing opportunity to look at different career paths and see work in action. I’ve had the best time working at TCS and meeting new people and making friends – I’m thankful to the Wings of Hope for giving me this chance and also TCS for having us there as it truly was an amazing week – Janika

In the work experience, I learnt a lot about the business world and how a program is developed from a simple idea, to a fully functional software, that is used in day-to-day life. On the first, day it was slightly awkward, meeting with people that I had never seen before. However, this was soon eradicated, as I got to know others, through working together for a project.  In addition to this, I were able to talk with people from the Information Technology industry, from Tata Consultancies Services, to be precise and learn about how a typical day for them would look like. I was also able to determine the ways in which I could become a potential candidate for an International Technology company. I also learnt the diversity of the industry, with around fifty people with the same job, ten types of jobs for each sector and around five sectors for a branch of the company. I was also required to talk to people, so that they understood what they had to do. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and appreciate being given this opportunity. Thank you WOHAA – Shiva

The work experience that I participated in was a very rewarding experience. I made several new friends and have learnt a great deal about working in an IT consulting firm. I really enjoyed working in a group to come up with a solution to a task that we had been given. I also greatly enjoyed the shadowing of different departments and would love to have the opportunity to do it again. Our liaison Sofia, was really helpful and a great source of guidance during the week – Jessica

The winners of WOHAA 2013-14 were very fortunate to spend a day learning from British Airways staff all about this world famous airline and what job opportunities they offer. CV writing, interview skills, language skills and social media were also discussed during these interesting and interactive sessions.

Students were privileged to have an afternoon workshop and tour at the BBC hosted by World News presenter and supporter of the Wings of Hope Babita Sharma. The focus of the workshop was about all things media, with students gaining a valuable insight into the industry of Journalism and what it would be like to work in the News department of the BBC. They were able to hear directly from Babita and a few of her colleagues about the various career roles available in the BBC. This included meeting a Director of the News, Editor of the News Website, News Presenter and Script Writer. It was interesting to hear about their daily tasks and activities but to also hear about their career paths and how they got to where they are today. Students were then given the unique opportunity to see the BBC World News studio and surrounding office in action whilst they were live on air.

The day finished off with a tour around the BBC Television Centre where students got to see props including the TARDIS and a Dalek from Dr Who, the studios provided for the filming of Miranda, Match of the Day, 10 O’clock Live, the dressing rooms used by Coldplay, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Wanted and much more. Students also got the chance to become weather forecast presenters, news readers and participants in a ‘Weakest Link’ style competition.

Feedback from the workshop was extremely positive, all in all the students found the experience enjoyable and beneficial.

The workshop absolutely lived up to my expectations! It was a great day with really lovely people, helpful tour guides and speakers and a lot of things to think about…It really was brilliant – Jess, Upper Harlington School

The workshop did live up to my expectations and I was really glad about the BBC tour around the building as I am a more practical individual and find it easier to learn on my feet. I learnt a lot – Bianca, Norbury Manor Business and Enterprise College

During their week at CAPCO, a global business and technology consultancy dedicated to the financial industry, our winners learnt lots about the world of work, and saw in depth how such a company operates. The students gained insight into the many different job roles and advice on how to pursue their chosen careers. They were also offered help and advice. Throughout the week the team were also given a project to complete in which they designed their own financial app for mobile banking.