Italy : Work experience

Work placements and exchange programmes

• AIESEC (Association Internationale des Etudiants en Sciences Economiques et Commerciales) arranges paid and voluntary placements in various countries which last between 8 and 18 months.
• IAESTE (The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience) arranges training placements abroad for science, engineering and technology students.
• The Leonardo da Vinci Programme  arranges vocational training exchanges and work placements with partner organisations in other countries. Contact your institution’s international office for more information. 

Teaching

Teachers of English are always in demand. Visit TEFL.com for examples of the type of vacancies that exist. Training and experience will make it much easier to get work. If you have a TEFL qualification you could teach in a language school. A list of relevant schools and vacancies is available from ESL Base .

Volunteering

Opportunities exist in voluntary projects or work projects such as those run by Concordia International Volunteers , Legambiente and Lunaria. The International Voluntary Service (IVS) in Britain may also have voluntary placements.

Casual work

Casual work is most easily found in tourism, mainly in coastal, lake and mountain resorts, and cities. Opportunities for casual work also exist in the agricultural sector, mainly in fruit picking and there is a strong demand for au pairs.

Websites with temporary/casual vacancies include:

• Anywork Anywhere - wide-ranging database advertising jobs such as truck drivers, nannies, language and other teaching across Europe;
• iAGORA - entry-level jobs and internships and more general information, searchable by country, in English;
• Talent Manager - internships and first jobs.

If possible, try to obtain a written contract with your job's terms and conditions before leaving the UK.

Gap year opportunities

For some examples of gap year opportunities in Italy, try Gap Year Directory and have a look at gap year for more general advice and links to gap year providers.