Placement Mixer

Creative Fuse North East’s Placement Mixer is your chance to find out how your organisation can recruit a talented student or graduate for a fully-funded short, project-based placement. Come along to hear presentations from businesses, academics and students about how a placement could benefit you, to find out about upcoming business support opportunities available through Creative Fuse North East and to network with professionals within the Creative, Digital and IT sectors.

What are the Creative Fuse Placement Schemes?

Creative Fuse North East will be offering a variety of placement opportunities through their partner universities. Available now, the University of Sunderland’s Placement Scheme can match your organisation with a student or graduate for short-term flexible projects or placements, providing expert support to:

• Develop or test a new product or service

• Engage with or research new markets and audiences

• Deliver design-led or creative projects that help your organisation develop new thinking.

Two types of placement are available:

1. Creative Fuse Placements Programme – This programme matches an individual graduate with your organisation who will work with you on a project of strategic value. The project can fulfil a need already identified by your organisation, or be co-developed with University academic staff. The graduate will be paid approximately £1200 for every four-week period, with scope to support longer project durations. The University of Sunderland will support the graduate placement and your organisation during the project both through the transfer of their knowledge and expertise.

2. Hothouse Innovation Programme - This programme will place emerging undergraduate talent from the University within ‘real-world’ scenarios. A student team will work to a project brief defined by your organisation, supported and overseen by our academics. Projects will be designed for a ‘fast response’ task and will be completed over around 5 to 10 days, dependent on the needs of your business. This quick turnaround can provide your business with accessible creative and innovative insight, and a cost-effective resource to address your needs.

If you are a North East-based SME working in the Creative, Digital and IT Sector, you could be eligible for support. The scheme also aims to help organisations working in the broader economy who wish to develop their creativity and innovation potential. Support is available between now and September 2018.

Placement Mixer Event

14:00 – 14:30 Registration and Networking

14:30 – 15:30 Presentations:

Sunderland Culture – challenges facing the cultural sector and ambitions for the future

• Kenny Sanger - Director, The Bunker C.I.C.

• Emma Horsman - Director, The Cultural Spring

Introduction to the University of Sunderland’s Placements and Hothouse Programmes

• Suzy O’Hara - Innovation Development Specialist, Creative Fuse North East

Introduction to Durham University’s Placement Programmes

• Ed Ruck-Keene - Business Development Manager, Creative Fuse North East

Case Studies from Businesses

• Speaker TBC

Case Studies from Academics

• Keith Nevens - Senior Lecturer in Advertising & Design, University of Sunderland

Case Studies from Students

• Georgia Shippen - Communications and Marketing Coordinator, The Cultural Spring - formerly University of Sunderland Film & Media placement student

15:30 – 17:00 Networking and Information Stands