Workplace expectations and belonging on placements

Updated Nov 06, 2026

Work placements can offer opportunities while also exposing unfamiliar professional expectations. Lisa Williams, Kathy Jordan and Tricia McLaughlin explore both sides in a study of low socioeconomic status students’ work-integrated learning experiences.

Four placement experiences

The researchers interviewed four students at a large urban Australian university, purposively selected from a survey of more than 200. All were first in their family to attend university. The analysis considered how access to networks and knowledge of workplace norms shaped their placements.

Participants described difficulty obtaining placements, anxiety about fitting in, and unfamiliar expectations about communication, dress and behaviour. Some adapted their presentation to match the workplace. The authors question the implications of treating this adaptation as a necessary part of employability.

The account is not wholly negative: all four cases also reported positive employability outcomes, including greater confidence or professional connections. The cases bring the benefits of placements and the effort involved in navigating an unfamiliar workplace into the same account.

Questions for placement teams

Our practical suggestion is to ask students what they needed to know before joining a workplace and where the process assumed existing professional contacts. Discuss induction expectations with placement hosts, including who can help when a student feels excluded.

Collect feedback about benefits as well as barriers. Agree a contact at the university and the host organisation before placement begins, with a clear route for raising problems. Ask about preparation, costs and workplace expectations early enough to act during the placement. Follow-up conversations can also help distinguish a challenging but valuable placement from an experience requiring intervention.

The belonging and support pathway connects these accounts with other experiences of inclusion. For programme-level review, see the therapy placement article.

Reference

Lisa Williams, Kathy Jordan and Tricia McLaughlin. “They want people who are not me”: low socioeconomic status students’ WIL experiences. Higher Education. DOI: 10.1007/s10734-025-01464-6.