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JENZA Intern UK

Internships UK

Want a summer to remember learning and exploring, need academic credit as part of your degree, or wondering what’s next after graduation? Put your career on the map with a 1-12 month overseas internship in the UK.

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The home of interning in the UK! Our sibling company, BUNAC, is the Tier 5 sponsor for this visa.

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Career goals + travel goals

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Why intern abroad in the UK?

We’re putting our serious hat on for a sec. The pointy graduation one. Getting hands-on work experience in your academic field can be essential to nailing that first job after college. And in a competitive job market, immersing yourself in a different cultural and professional environment with an internship overseas can set you apart from other candidates. Plus, the UK is a total boss when it comes to internships abroad. A cultural, creative and corporate superpower – every sector and industry are represented here. You’ll learn from leaders in your field, build your network, and grow personally and professionally by living and working in one of the most dynamic and diverse places in the world. A win for your work life – and your social life.

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How does interning in the UK work?

Choose from two options

You can’t intern in the UK without a visa sponsor. Along with our UK-based sibling company, we’re one of the largest A-rated sponsors for the UK Government’s Temporary Work GAE visa. Not only can we sponsor eligible students or recent grads of all nationalities to intern in the UK, but we can also support you in finding your internship via our Job Hub.

Option 1: Just the sponsorship

You can’t intern in the UK without a visa sponsor. BUNAC, our sibling company, is one of the largest A-rated sponsors for the UK Government’s Temporary Work GAE visa. Not only can we sponsor eligible students or recent grads of all nationalities to intern in the UK, but we can also support you in finding your internship via our Job Hub.

Option 2: Sponsorship + internship

Anyone who’s ever spammed HR inboxes with witty cover letters and creatively designed resumes, will know that getting a foot in the door can be hard. From fashion brands to accounting firms, we have pre-qualified UK employers on our Job Hub who are actively recruiting interns. Find out more about ‘Placement Support’ below.

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18+

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Full-time student or recent grad

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All nationalities (except UK)

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Depart year-round

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1-12 months’ sponsorship

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Access to hiring UK companies

From €1,449

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What he said

“You can travel and learn and gain experience at the same time.”

A bumper deal for your resume and your passport pages, find out why our roadtester, Samarth, loved living in London and exploring Europe on his summer internship.

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This way to the UK!

Intern UK | From €1,449

Handled by our dedicated London HQ, we provide the UK sponsorship, visa expertise and placement support to intern in the UK for a summer or up to a year on an overseas internship.

If you’re a current full-time student, Intern UK is perfect if you need to get academic credit as part of your degree, or want to use your summer break or a semester away to get valuable short-term work experience. Or if you’ve graduated in the last two years, it’s a unique window to come to the UK for up to 12 months – increasing your earning potential, growing your skillset and building your professional contacts.

Internships can be paid or voluntary, 1-12 months, and we can sponsor you if you're applying from your home country – or if you're an international student on a study visa.

What visa do I need? To intern abroad in the UK, you need to be eligible for a Temporary Work GAE (Government Authorised Exchange) visa – previously known as the Tier 5 visa. This allows international students and recent grads to come to the UK for 1-12 months to complete short-term work experience. To be eligible for this visa, you must be:

  • 18+
  • Any nationality
  • Either a full-time degree level student (unfortunately distance learning is not permitted on this visa); or a recent graduate who will start their UK internship within 24 months of the date on your graduation certificate.
  • If English isn’t your native language, you’ll need to show a SELT (Secure English Language Test) certificate equal or above of a B2, or IELTS score of 6.0.
  • You must be able to show proof of funds of £1,270 when applying for your sponsorship and when you enter the UK.
  • You must not have interned at your host company before. (We can sponsor you up to two times, but it must be at different UK companies).
  • You cannot work alongside your internship on this visa, for example, you can’t do a casual bar job while doing your internship.
  • You must have travel insurance that includes a minimum of USD $100,000 medical cover and repatriation of mortal remains. (Our team can suggest an insurance provider).
  • You must have an internship offer that has been vetted by our team to ensure it meets the UK Government’s criteria for this visa. (See the below tabs for the types of internships that are permitted).

Why do I need a sponsor? Before you can apply for a Temporary Work GAE visa, you must have a government-approved UK sponsor (This is us, BTW). Together with our UK sibling company, BUNAC, we provide the placement and host company vetting to issue the Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) you need to apply for your visa.

The visa process includes an online application and in-person biometrics appointment in your home country. (EU passport holders with e-passports can complete their biometrics online). The Temporary Work GAE visa itself costs £298 and must be paid directly to UKVI (UK Visa and Immigration). For internships over 6 months, you are required to pay an IHS (Immigration Health Surcharge) of £1,035. This gives you access to NHS (National Health Service) treatment while in the UK and is paid directly to UKVI.

What industries can I work in? Marketing internships, fashion internships, accounting internships, publishing internships, museums internships... the UK hosts every sector and industry under the sun. (And despite the rainy reputation, we do get epic summers. Not to mention, your Euro Summer is only a 90-minute train under the channel...).

Apart from interning in healthcare and hospitality, we can sponsor you to work in pretty much any field. And unlike some student or grad visas, your UK internship doesn’t have to be connected to your degree - giving you the freedom to get experience in a sector that’s aligned with your future career aspirations.

Where can I work? While most interns tend to head for London, you can intern anywhere in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland – getting to see more than just the capital and saving some ££ on rent.

Option 1: Own Placement From innovative start-ups to leading global brands, most of our participants land a professional placement on their own – either through their own network or the use a placement company. Use the criteria checklist on the below tabs to make sure you’re approaching UK companies with the correct requirements to get your internship placement offer.

Option 2: Placement Support Like any experience worth having, finding an internship can be hard going. It takes research, determination and some minor-but-legal stalking on LinkedIn. Or paying a placement company to sort it for you. We reach out to UK companies actively searching for interns, vet the roles, and add them to our online Job Hub where you can search and apply directly.

Wooing and vetting these employers takes a dedicated team, which is why if you find your internship on our Job Hub, the ‘Placement Support’ is slightly higher than the ‘Own Placement’ option. We think it’s a fair price for the time and effort it saves – and we hope that when you’re smashing it on the London PR scene, you agree.

Currently hiring on the Job Hub We currently have paid and voluntary London-based internships available in Marketing, Fashion, Architecture, Artist Management, Social, Finance, Business and more. Hit 'Placement Support' to apply.

Are internships paid? We can sponsor you to do a voluntary (or unpaid) internship, or a paid internship. Salaries vary between placements, but they must meet the minimum wage requirements below. The cost of living in the UK, especially in London, might be higher than in your home country. While we don’t offer accommodation, we work with some great people who do. When you book, we’ll give you all the intel you need on how to find a place to live.

Internship criteria checklist It’s a UK immigration requirement that your internship must be:

  • A maximum of 12 months in duration and at least 25 hours per week.
  • A supernumerary position, meaning that the role is not taking the place of a permanent employee.
  • It must include complex activities rather than routine tasks, backed up by a detailed training plan (read: you’re not making copies, or coffees).
  • It must include employer supervision. We look for a ‘full-time staff to intern’ ratio of 5:1.
  • If it’s a paid internship, it must meet the UK’s National Minimum Wage legislation.
  • If it’s a voluntary internship, it must meet UK Volunteer Rights guidelines. Internship longer than six months must be paid.
  • Your host company should be registered with Companies House in the UK for at least the last 12 months.
  • At least 30% of a hybrid internship must be based in the company’s registered office. You cannot be fully remote.

How we help As a global family of work abroad brands, we’ve worked closely with the UK Government since 2009 to launch this unique program for students and grads. We know the rules inside and out – so get on the dog and bone (Cockney for phone) if you have any questions. Don’t know what a Cockney is? Watch a Guy Ritchie film before you jet in.

Timeframes We advise starting your Intern UK application 4-6 weeks before your internship start date. Our UK-based team will always work as quickly as they can on your application – with additional options for priority processing along the way. However, each application is different and we are subject to government immigration processes and wait times – so please allow yourself as much time as possible to get through the process.

Own Placement Standard – allow at least 6 weeks Priority – allow at least 4 weeks

Placement Support If you find a position on our Job Hub, please add 1-2 weeks to the above timeframes. If you are using a placement partner, your application will be subject to their timeframes.

Application process

1. Check the eligibility Check the ‘About the visa’ tab above to make sure you’re eligible for the Temporary Work GAE visa.

2. Find an internship You must have an internship offer before we can sponsor you.

  • If you already have an internship lined up, great – just ensure if meets the criteria checklist in the tab above and pay your deposit for the ‘Own Placement’ cost.

  • If you need an internship, after you’ve paid your deposit, you’ll get access to our Job Hub of UK employers actively seeking interns. Check out the ‘Placement Support’ inclusions tab for more on how this works.

3. Vetting and paperwork Once you have your internship offer, our team will vet your placement and host company to ensure it meets the immigration requirements for this visa. We’ll then issue the Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) you need to apply for your Temporary Work GAE visa.

4. Apply for your visa Unfortunately, we’re not able to apply for your UK visa for you – it must be done via the UK Visa and Immigration website (UKVI). Our team have assisted thousands of students with this part of their application, and provide step-by-step guidance.

5. Attend your appointment You’ll then need to send your passport to a UK Visa Application Centre in your home country and attend a biometrics appointment (mugshot and fingerprints). EU passport holders with e-passports can do this part online.

6. Sort the essentials Once your visa is secured, it’s safe to book your flights and UK accommodation. In your online customer account, you’ll find information and advice with everything you need to know about moving to the UK.

7. Arrive in the UK You’ll independently start your internship in the UK. Our UK JENZA team will be in touch for monthly check-ups, check-ins with your supervisor, and will be on hand if you need anything.

What's included

Choose from two placement options, with different prices depending on the length of your internship: 0-6 months or 6-12 months.

Everything Own Placement includes, plus access to our Job Hub of pre-qualified UK companies who are actively searching for international interns for their in-house internship programs.

How Job Hub access works Once you’ve paid your deposit (this is the same amount for Own Placement and Placement Support), you can start searching and applying for internship positions on our online Job Hub. Internships range from marketing internships to accounting internships, with more UK employers being added all the time.

If you find a suitable internship, you’ll then pay the ‘Placement Support’ price when your final payment is due. If you’re not able to find what you’re looking for (however much we’d love to, we don’t have internships for the hundreds of academic courses that out there), then our team will advise on next steps and can recommend placement partners to help.

If you don’t find an internship on our Job Hub, you’ll pay the ‘Own Placement’ cost when you pay your final instalment.

Cost

1-6 month internship - €1,819

6-12 month internship - €2,059

Why is it more the longer you stay? For internships over 6 months, we’re required to do a second site visit to your employer.

See below for visa fees and any additional costs.

Inclusions

  • Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) required to apply for your Temporary Work GAE visa
  • Step-by-step guidance on applying for your visa and attending your biometrics appointment
  • Evaluation of your internship offer to ensure it meets the UK visa requirements
  • Vetting of your prospective UK employer to ensure they comply with UK regulations
  • Support with the essentials, from finding UK accommodation to travel insurance
  • Monthly check-ins with the London team to ensure your training is going to plan

Cost

0-6 month internship - €1,449

6-12 month internship - €1,549

Why is it more the longer you stay? For internships over 6 months, we’re required to do a second site visit to your employer.

See below for visa fees and any additional costs.

Book now pay later

  • Secure your spot with €115 deposit
  • Final balance due once all supporting documents are approved and before we review the training plan from your employer

About our pricing Our mission is to make working abroad more accessible. Meaning we do everything we can to pay our team, support our partners and make a profit – without screwing over the people who matter. Find out how our pricing works and the people involved in making your JENZA happen.

We also walk the walk, donating 5% of profits to our overseas scholarship fund.

What’s not included

Employee pre-site visit (if required)

USD $150 (or currency equivalent). We will need to conduct an in-person visit, prior to approving your internship, for any UK company who has fewer than 20 full-time employees, less than £3 million turnover, or who has been trading for less than two years.

SELT

If English isn’t your native language, you’ll need to provide a SELT certificate equal or above of a B2, or IELTS score of 6.0.

Flights

We don’t recommend booking flights until your visa is approved.

Accommodation in the UK

The resource section in your online account has advice and recommendations on finding UK accommodation.

Intern UK Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS)

For internships over 6 months, this is £1,035

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Just graduated and having a ‘what’s next?’ moment?

The UK is one of the top places in the world to do an internship overseas. But there's an expiration date on nailing that global experience and British accent. You must have entered the UK and started your internship within 24 months of your graduation certificate.

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On the Job Hub

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Just some of our UK employers

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What our UK roadtester had to say

Why intern abroad vs intern at home?

Doing a professional internship during or after university is a tried-and-tested way of increasing your employability. But doing an internship overseas, is like internship 2.0 for your resume. For future employers, it shows you have the confidence and drive to take on new challenges and adapt to different cultural environments. And for you, it will expose you to wider range of industries, opportunities and cultures that you might not have experienced at home. Plus, the global citizen card is massive. And who doesn’t want a summer of music festivals and rooftop hangs in London, with jollies over to Europe on your weekends off?

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All the inspo and intel on work & travel

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No placement, no worries

Don't have a placement lined up?

Hit 'Placement Support' when you book for Job Hub access to our database of UK employers with internship positions to fill.

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Who you gonna call?

Let's talk UK

Get some facetime with our amazing JENZA Support Squad. When they’re not posing for pool pics, they’re making your work aboard adventures happen with their endless enthusiasm and mad traveller skills. These include: parent whispering, visa geekery and the ability to pack a backpack in 30 seconds flat.

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More ways to work the world

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Did someone say ‘gap decade?’

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JENZA Travel International Ltd is a company registered in Dublin, Ireland with Registered Company No. 707281 and registered address at 29-31 South William St, Dublin, Ireland, D02 EY96.