Work experience with an MP.

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Talexe

I more or less just resent my previous e-mail with CV and cover letter, and was asked to fill in a questionnaire. Clearly, last time I'd just enquired too early! My advice would be to get the e-mail address of your local MP, and send a basic letter covering your interest for the placement with your CV attached.

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice :smile:

That's what I was worried about. Applying too early and being forgotten about or applying too late and missing the boat; it's sometimes difficult to know when to apply when there's no formal application scheme.

Reply 21

Bella_trixxx

So, when *would* be a good time to apply if you want work over Summer?

Reply 22

rotor

Remember that all MP's have a summer break which lasts until the first week of October so I doubt they'll be in their offices.

Reply 23

jasmineknight

adilmorrison

I did the same thing... How was your time?

It wasn't all that exciting, mostly office work. How was yours?

Reply 24

MissHero

rotor

Remember that all MP's have a summer break which lasts until the first week of October so I doubt they'll be in their offices.

Beat me to it.

I'd say the best way to pin down some work experience would be to find out who their researcher is, and write to them. They get hundreds of emails every day, a letter is less likely to be lost so easily.

I spent 1 day a week last semester as an intern to an AM at the Welsh Assembly, that was part of my uni course, but the above advice is based on my experience in the office.
You might do better targeting the constituency office for summer work experience, given how keen MP's have been recently to point out that the summer recess is not a holiday but an opportunity to catch up on constituency work... :wink:

Reply 25

rotor

MissHero

Yeah and MAYBE the bigger ones? As in Cameron and Clegg?
I think they might work over the summer but I'm not sure, does anyone know?

Reply 26

student1337

for those ppl that have done some work experience, could you do it for 1 or 2 days a week over a few months or did it have to be for a whole 1 or 2 weeks straight. i imagine it would depend on the MP

Reply 27

CatatonicStupor

student1337

for those ppl that have done some work experience, could you do it for 1 or 2 days a week over a few months or did it have to be for a whole 1 or 2 weeks straight. i imagine it would depend on the MP

I'd already done my 'compulsory work experience', so I only asked to do it for a day with my local MP (but that's also because the man is a prick, but that's me being partisan); and then I did a day with my AM in the Welsh Assembly (but that was cause I had to take time off school, and it wasn't exactly ''all that important'').

You can do it for as long as you ask or tbh. I know of some people who've done a full summer of work experience with their MEP over in Brussels. They basically shadow them as much as possible - office work, travelling to the constituency with them, etc etc. There are others who do a week with the MP, and do a day or two in the constituency office, and the rest of the time in Westminster.

Really, if you want the experience, I'd suggest keeping it to full weeks, like half term or something. It's so much more practical, and easier for the MP to at least remember who you are, instead of showing up willy nilly every week just so you can say you did work experience, but you had to fit it round your schedule.

Reply 28

garywalsh94

I know this is an old thread but like me i'm sure people are still looking at it for advice. I basically emailed him saying that I'm a Politics student who lives in his constituency and would like to enhance my experiences and gain some knowledge into the working of MPs etc. He passed it on to his researcher, so it may be worth emailing them first and i've sorted a week out in July. I know someone posted about being forgotten but he said to email a couple of weeks before to arrange it so he can sort things for me to do whilst im there.