Heather Collier has been appointed director of the National Council for Work Experience (NCWE) following the retirement this month of Liz Rhodes, MBE, who became the Council’s first director in 2002.

Heather joined NCWE as a manager in 2005 from Pendle Enterprise Trust where she delivered the Shell STEP programme in East Lancashire and North Manchester.  Since joining, her remit has spanned all NCWE activities but with particular emphasis on the development of the NCWE Quality Mark.

According to Collier, NCWE is widely credited with putting the many benefits of work experience on radar with employers, students and recent graduates alike through initiatives such as the Work Experience Awards, Quality Mark, and the provision of numerous workshops and conferences presenting work experience in action.

Heather Collier, director, NCWE

When NCWE was created, work experience was an underrated and little understood discipline; now it is an essential component of any graduate CV and a vital part of graduate recruitment programmes,” explains Collier. “My task is to build on this achievement by initially extending the Quality Mark across more blue chip graduate recruiters and exploring wider opportunities with SMEs; plus strengthening online work experience links between universities and business organisations.

Increasingly employers are recruiting directly from a pool of students they have got to know through work experience and internship placement programmes. This is a cost effective recruitment channel as both sides already have experience of each other. Savvy employers recognise that work experience puts them in touch with the strongest candidates who have already shown real commitment to their industry; it’s a win-win situation that benefits both student and employer.

Outgoing director Liz Rhodes, comments:

My aim for NCWE was to see all students doing some form of work experience as part of their course so that they graduate with well-trained minds as well as practical understanding of what is expected when they go for their first job, so they are ‘employable’. We are well on the way to achieving this goal and, under Heather’s direction, I’m sure it will be reached very soon.