The University of Aberdeen Careers and Employability Service has been recognised for projects which significantly enhance graduate and student employability through smart use of resources.
The team has been shortlisted for the highly competitive Employability Impact Award at the upcoming AGCAS (Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services) Awards for Excellence 2025.
This year’s shortlist for the Employability Impact Award includes just five ambitious initiatives from across the UK — among them the University of Aberdeen’s innovative ABDN Internship programme.
The ABDN Internship programme includes innovative part-time, term-time paid internships, funded by the University, which see students work for a total of 70 hours over the course of seven weeks on a project set by a local employer.
The programme also includes Interns with Impact (funded by The Wood Foundation) which are internships exclusively in the third sector as well as a Group Virtual internship which allows students to undertake an internship wherever they are based over the summer.
The Employability Impact Award aims to honour a single initiative that has meaningfully advanced student or graduate employability, placing emphasis on impact over scale or expenditure.
Tracey Innes, Head of Careers and Employability at Aberdeen, said: “Being shortlisted for the Employability Impact Award is testament to our team’s dedication to creating high quality and meaningful opportunities for our students. We’re extremely proud of the experiences created for our students.
“The ABDN Internship programme is a true partnership approach and we’d like to thank our wonderful host organisations as well as funders such as The Wood Foundation and Santander.
“This prestigious nomination highlights the University of Aberdeen’s ongoing commitment to equipping students and graduates for today’s dynamic job market, leveraging smart, inclusive and effective programmes to foster meaningful career outcomes.”
The winners will be unveiled at the AGCAS Awards for Excellence ceremony, held during the AGCAS Annual Conference on 17 June 2025 in Newcastle.
Any organisations interested in finding out more about the ABDN Internship programme or about hosting an internship please visit https://employers.careerhub.abdn.ac.uk/content/internships or contact employers@abdn.ac.uk.