Work Integrated Learning (WIL) at WMS
The Work Integrated Learning (WIL) paper within our degrees provides students with hands-on experience within their degree to extend and develop their skills in business, critical thinking, innovation, and communication while building connections within the community.
WIL information session
We recently hosted a WIL information session which you can watch here.
Please see the "FAQ" section below for upcoming dates/deadlines.
Which paper should I enrol in?
Your chosen WIL paper will depend on which degree you are pursuing and what you hope to get out of your WIL paper. The subject area of your WIL paper must relate to either your major or minor.
Should I enrol in WSAFE or WSOMM?
WSAFE - Choose this paper code if you have a major or minor in: Accounting, Agribusiness, Finance or Economics.
WSOMM - Choose this paper code if you have a major or minor in: Business Analytics, Digital Business, Human Resource Management, Leadership, Leadership Communication, Marketing, Project Management, Public Relations, Strategic Management, Supply Chain Management or Tourism and Hospitality Management.
Note: If you have a major and/or minor(s) in both WSAFE and WSOMM subjects, you must enrol in the WIL paper that matches the subject area of your internship/research. E.g. If you are studying a major in Accounting with a minor in Marketing, and your internship relates to Marketing, you would enrol in WSOMM396.
Preparing for your WIL paper
Unlike other papers, there are several steps you must complete before the start date of your WIL paper. Your enrolment is contingent on completing the preparatory steps outlined in the tabs below.
396 internship
The 396 internship paper provides students with an opportunity to gain supervised practical experience within an organisation. This paper enables students to identify their strengths and weaknesses through a variety of reflective evaluations of their work.
Requirements for your internship:
- It must directly relate to your WMS major(s) or minor(s) subject area
- You must have a designated mentor at your organisation to oversee your work
- You must complete a minimum of 110 working hours in your internship
- Before the start of the trimester, you must complete steps 1 - 4 in the tabs above
Please apply to enrol in your 396 paper at least three months before the start of your WIL internship.
- Once your application to enrol in your 396 has been approved, please accept your enrolment agreement in MyWaikato.
- Enrolling three months in advance ensures that WMS can offer you support in finding an internship, should you need it.
- Once you are fully enrolled in MyWaikato, you will start to receive the WIL preparation emails that include important information such as deadlines and due dates.
- Note: WIL preparation emails are sent up to four months before the start of your WIL paper.
As part of professional development within your degree, you must have an approved CV and cover letter that is representative of your capabilities. This will enable organisations to determine your suitability for their position.
Do you need assistance building your CV? There are a number of resources available to help you in your MyCareer portal. Please follow the steps below (in order). If you already have a CV that you would like to have considered, you may skip to step 3 - if your score is below 60%, please start at step 1.
- Book into a relevant workshop – this can be done by clicking on the ‘Workshops’ tab on your MyCareer page.
- If you are unable to attend an upcoming workshop, you can access the pre-recorded workshops on the MyCareer platform by clicking: Tools > Need CV help > Click on CV Review, under ‘Your tasks’. Then click ‘Open Resource’ in the ‘Watch the pre-recorded CV workshop’ section.
- To view CV templates, you can find these in MyCareer under: Tools > CV360 > Scroll down, click ‘Start Here’, then ‘Browse Templates’ to view. Additionally, we recommend the following resources:
- Careers.govt.nz
- Microsoft Word Templates
- ZEIL (App only)
- Designed for mobile and made easy with smart prompts, the free step-by-step CV builder has been designed with NZ's top career advisors and employers to let you choose a professional template that suits you.
- Once your CV is created using a template, you can submit your CV to the CV360 tool by dropping your CV into the ‘Drag your CV here to start’ section. This will generate a score. Please make the suggested changes to your CV until your score reaches at least 60%
- Once your CV score is above 60%, click the blue ‘Submit for Review’ button for a personal/tailored review of your CV. This is where you will receive personalised feedback on your CV from a trained Careers Advisor.
- Once you have received feedback and notes from a Careers Advisor and have made these changes to your CV, please attend an online drop in session or online career chat.
- These drop-ins are weekly and you do not need to book. The sessions are 15 minutes one-on-one. The drop in session schedule can be found on MyCareer > Events > Drop-ins and Online Career Chats
Need help with your Cover Letter?
- Attend a workshop first, and then upload your cover letter by clicking: Tools > Need cover letter help > select ‘Upload cover letter file here for review by a Career Advisor’ under ‘Actions’. Once you have completed this, you may attend a drop in session to go over your cover letter.
Once you have your CV, log into your MyWIL account, go to the 'Forms' tab, click 'Edit’, and submit the 'CV Review Form'.
- You will be emailed when a decision is made on your CV. Once you have an accepted CV on file you will be able to access available internships through MyWIL. See the next steps for further information.
- Your cover letter does not need to be submitted for review in MyWIL. Your cover letter will be sent to your internship selections when you follow the instructions in the ‘Step 3: Internships’ tab. Any review of your cover letter can be done through your MyCareer portal.
If you would like to apply for an internship with an organisation that is partnered with WMS, you can view these opportunities two months before the start of your WIL paper. To view these:
- Log into your MyWIL account
- Click the 'WIL Activities' tab
- Click 'Opportunities' (top right-hand corner)
- 'Select' up to three preferred internship choices
- Click 'Save'
- You will need to attach your personalised CV and Cover Letter to each of your selected internships by clicking 'Documents' below each one, then click 'Save'
- Note: Once you have saved your CV and Cover Letter, they are submitted to the organisation for their consideration. If successful, the organisation will contact you. WMS is not able to guarantee students will be selected for an internship.
Important: Keep an eye out for incoming emails/calls from organisations. Take care to respond promptly and in a professional manner.
Finding an internship yourself?
Resources to help find an internship can be found here:
Regardless of whether you have preferenced in MyWIL or have found your own internship, please see the next step to complete your '96 Proposal Form'.
You will need to submit your '96 Proposal Form' for approval as soon as possible before the start of your WIL paper. To submit your proposal:
- Log into your MyWIL account
- Go to the 'Forms' tab
- Once there, click 'edit' on the '96 Proposal Form', fill in all the required fields, and then click 'submit'
Once you have submitted your '96 Proposal Form', this will be reviewed for suitability. Please note, we are not able to guarantee that your proposal will be approved. You will receive an email once a decision has been made.
399 research project
The 399 is a research project undertaken by a student with academic supervision. This project aims to solve a 'problem' and should be related to a company or industry that this might impact.
It provides students with the opportunity to complete a significant body of work with academic merit. Before undertaking a 399, students must discuss a topic that interests them with their supervisor or subject convenor and complete the following steps.
Please apply to enrol in your 399 paper at least three months before you start your research project.
- Once your application to enrol in your 399 has been approved, please accept your enrolment agreement in MyWaikato.
- Enrolling three months in advance ensures that WMS can offer you support in finding an academic supervisor, should you need help finding one.
- Set up an appointment with your 399 paper convenor to discuss and finalise your research topic and suitable academic supervisor. If you already have a supervisor for your 399 please refer to Step 3: Proposal.
- If you need assistance finding an academic supervisor, please contact MSC. You can either email us at [email protected] or book an appointment to speak with an advisor.
Please make sure you have an idea of what you might like to research before your appointment.
Submit a '99 Proposal Form'
Access the proposal form on your 399 paper's Moodle page. Please submit this form as soon as possible to ensure that you are ready to begin your research as soon as the trimester starts.
Submit an 'Acknowledgement of External Relationship' Form
- If you are working with an external organisation for your research, you may also need to formally document this connection by completing an ‘Acknowledgement of External Relationship’ form. Please speak with your academic advisor to determine if it is necessary for you to complete this form before the start of the trimester.
- This form can be found by:
- Logging into your MyWIL account
- Going to the ‘Forms’ tab
- Once there, click edit on the ‘Acknowledgement of External Relationship Form’, fill in the required fields, and then click submit. It will then be considered for approval.
Once you have completed the 396 or 399 steps outlined above, be sure to keep checking your Moodle page as soon as it's available to ensure that you are fully prepared to start your WIL paper.
Frequently asked questions
What are the important upcoming WIL dates?
396 Deadlines for 23C
- 14th September 2023 - CV Due Date
- 15th September 2023 - Internship Preferencing Opens
- 29th September 2023 - Priority Preferencing Deadline
- 13th October 2023 - Internship Preferencing Closes
- 9th November 2023 - Proposal Form Due
399 Deadlines for 23C
- 9th November 2023 - Proposal Form Due
No proposal by 9th November 2023 means 23C students will be withdrawn from paper. This proposal date applies to all 396 and 399 students.
396 Deadlines for 24A
- 5th January 2024 - CV Due Date
- 5th January 2024 - Internship Preferencing Opens
- 19th January 2024 - Priority Preferencing Deadline
- 2nd February 2024 - Internship Preferencing Closes
- 24th February 2024 - Proposal Form Due
399 Deadlines for 24A
- 24th February 2024 - Proposal Form Due
No proposal by 24th February means 24A students will be withdrawn from paper. This proposal date applies to all 396 and 399 students.
How long is the WIL paper?
396 Internship
The 396 requires students to complete a total of a minimum of 110 hours at a host organisation. Most internships are completed between 10 and 17 weeks. This paper is designed for you to complete your 110 hours in a way that suits you and your organisation. There are no set days or hours per week that you need to complete as long as you meet the minimum 110 hours required by the end of the WIL paper.
If you have found an internship that does not offer 110 hours within one trimester, and significantly overlaps with another trimester, please reach out to MSC for help with selecting which trimester to enrol in.
399 Report of an Investigation
The enrolment period is a normal trimester. Revisions of the topic with your supervisor's help are included in the 17 weeks you have to complete the full report. Please note that your draft report should be submitted to your supervisor, and a second assessor, one month prior to this end date.
When can I apply to enrol in my WIL paper?
You should apply to enrol at least three months before the start of your WIL paper.
To have the best opportunity, students should have completed 240 points, including 120 points above 100 level, and have completed at least 45 points at 200 level or above in their chosen subject before enrolling in this paper.
If you have met the above requirements, you can submit a change of enrolment in MyWaikato to add your 396 or 399 paper.
If you have found an internship but do not meet the above requirements please contact [email protected] or book an appointment to speak with an advisor.
Does WMS help place me into an internship?
WMS is partnered with organisations both locally and throughout the North Island. Students will be able to find a list of these opportunities in MyWIL which will be advertised two months before the start of the trimester.
To apply for these internships, students will need to follow the steps outlined in the ‘396 Step 3: Internships’ tab above.
Can I find my own Internship?
Yes, you can!
If you've found your own internship, you'll need to submit your ‘Internship Proposal Form’ in MyWIL. Please submit this as soon as possible for review. Please note, we are not able to guarantee that your proposal will be approved. You will receive an email once a decision has been made.
If you have any questions in regards to finding your own internship please contact [email protected] or book an appointment to speak with an advisor.
What counts as an internship?
An internship involves immersion in the workplace, so you need to be able to meet the time commitments required for the paper. You must work on a supervised project or series of work tasks that directly relate to your chosen subject.
An internship does not necessarily require you to be located at the organisation. Depending on what options are available in your degree, it may also be undertaken as an individual project, group project or class project.
To see the requirements of an internship, please see the steps outlined in the ‘396 Requirements’ tab above.
Still unsure what counts?
Please contact [email protected] or book an appointment to speak with an advisor.
Alternatively, you can submit your proposal form by following the instructions outlined within the “Step 4: Proposal” tab above. The Paper Convenor will get back to you with a decision or feedback once they have reviewed your form.
Which Trimester can my internship or research start?
396 Internship
- WSAFE396 can be taken in A, B or C trimesters.
- WSOMM396 can be taken in A, B or C trimesters.
399 Report of an Investigation
- WSAFE399 can be taken in A, B or C trimesters.
- WSOMM399 can be taken in A or B trimesters.
You will need to work with your organisation mentor ahead of time to choose a start date. The agreed start date will determine which trimester you will need to enrol in.
Please ensure you are enrolled three months prior to the start of your chosen trimester for your WIL paper.
How do I come up with a 399 research topic?
Your research topic should relate to your major subject and is relevant in some way to a specific business, industry, or the wider business community. For further guidance in selecting a topic please consult with the paper convenor in your subject area (listed below).
- Accounting
- Economics/Agribusiness
- Finance
- School of Management and Marketing (Digital Business, Human Resource Management, Leadership, Leadership Communication, Marketing, Public Relations, Strategic Management, Supply Chain Management, Tourism & Hospitality Management)
.
For questions, expressions of interest or further information please contact : [email protected]