Description of the Placement Process

Inclusion in the curriculum

In the current Applied Informatics study programme (from 2024), the professional placement is included in the following module:

• Professional placement
  • course worth 24 credits
  • students are required to complete a 560-hour (14 working weeks) placement in a company

In the recommended study plan, the course is scheduled for the 6th semester.

Administrative arrangements for practical placements at VŠPJ

Practical placements for the APIN programme are organised by two roles within the Department of Technical Studies: the practical placement tutor and the practical placement officer.

The main responsibilities of the practical placement tutor are:

• to assess and approve intended practical placements
• to monitor the progress of practical placements
• to evaluate and approve the outcomes of completed practical placements
• to award credits for the ‘Practical Placement’ course
• to ensure the smooth organisation of practical placements at the Department of Technical Studies and to resolve any serious issues relating to students' practical placements in the APIN study programme.

The main responsibilities of the practical placement officer are:

• to manage the administrative aspects of practical placements
• to maintain records of the necessary documents relating to practical placements
• to provide a consultation service regarding practical placements.

General rules

Practical placements in the APIN programme can generally be divided into two categories; the method of supervision, implementation and assessment of the placement will vary depending on the type of placement:

• the student contributes to the creation of a specific, measurable product or output (a programme, analysis, database design or implementation, experiment, etc.); this is a project-type placement;
• the student contributes to day-to-day, ongoing activities (e.g. ongoing network administration, including identifying and resolving issues, software testing, virtualisation, data storage management, etc.).

In both cases, care must be taken to ensure that the activities carried out are consistent with the (see also Introduction, Theoretical knowledge and Activities to Practise).

Before starting the practical placement

No later than 3 weeks before the start of the placement, the student must register their placement on the praxe.vspj.cz portal. 

The registered intended placement will then be reviewed by the placement tutor to ensure it meets the placement requirements and the student’s study programme. No later than 10 working days after registering the placement, the student will be informed whether the placement has been approved.

The organisation (company) offering the practical placement may, upon the student’s application for the placement, require the student to sit an entrance test; if it is found that the student does not meet the required standard, the organisation has the right to reject the student.

No later than 5 working days before the start of the practical placement, the student must submit a fully completed Practical Placement Agreement to the practical placement officer. The student will find the agreement on the practical placement portal once their placement has been approved by the supervisor. The agreement is generated with all the necessary details and information that the student provided when registering it. The Practical Placement Agreement is confirmed on behalf of VŠPJ by the head of the relevant department. The Agreement must specify the designated staff member responsible for the student’s practical placement, as appointed by the organisation. It is required (see also Description of the placement post) that this staff member holds a university degree at least at Bachelor’s level (in justified cases, this requirement may be waived).

During the practical placement

During the practical placement, the student must complete the Practical Placement Work Log on the praxe.vspj.cz portal at least once a week. During the placement, checks are carried out by VŠPJ – see below.

Upon completion of the placement

Credits for the placement will be awarded by the placement tutor upon fulfilment of the conditions set out in the chapter Practical Placement Evaluation.

Approval and monitoring of the placement

Approval of the practical placement is based on the information provided in the “Intended Practical Placement Report” form, available in the “Documents” section of the portal praxe.vspj.cz). The specification requirements vary according to the type of practical placement, as set out above in the General Rules in the chapter Description of the Placement Process. Detailed information on the monitoring of the practical placement is provided below; however, the practical placement work log will always be monitored on an ongoing basis.

Production of a measurable outcome (the “project” type)

1) Approval of this type of placement is subject to:

• a precise specification of the initial state of the problem (the brief, what has already been analysed, what has already been implemented, and what experiments have already been carried out)
• a precise specification of the final outcome of the practical work (e.g. a description of the programme’s planned functionality, a description of the intended analysis, an outline of the planned experiments)
• a precise definition of the student’s role in solving the problem (e.g. the student will programme module X, carry out a series of experiments Y–Z)

The above information must be provided by the work placement provider (company) and must be included in the "Intended Practical Placement Report" form.

2) The student may agree with the employer on a specific arrangement for carrying out the work placement, whereby they do not need to be constantly present at the workplace but may carry out activities related to the practical placement from any location; this must be indicated on the “Intended Practical Placement Report” form.

3) Compliance with the practical placement requirements is verified by comparing the specifications set out in point 1) with the actual circumstances.

• If, during the course of the practical placement, there is a significant change to the specifications set out in point 1), the student is obliged to report this to the placement tutor, who will decide on the next steps.
• The inspection is carried out by the placement tutor or, where applicable, another person authorised by the placement tutor – if the student is working on their bachelor’s thesis during the placement, this person may be their supervisor.
• If the subject matter of the work is protected as company know-how, the conditions under which the inspection will take place must be demonstrably agreed with the company in advance.

4) If the employer discovers a gross breach of work duties on the part of the student, they shall inform the work placement supervisor; such a finding may constitute grounds for not awarding credit.

Ongoing, systematic work

1) Approval of this type of practical placement is subject to:

• a precise specification of the student’s job description, i.e. a specific description of their duties, competences and responsibilities; vague descriptions such as ‘the student will carry out activities as required by their supervisor’ cannot be accepted
• specifying the workplace where the student will undertake the practical placement, and specifying the hours during which the student will be present at the workplace

The above information must be provided by the practical placement provider (company) and must be included in the “Intended Practical Placement Report” form.

2) The student must be present at the designated workplace during the specified hours for the entire duration of the practical placement.

3) Compliance with the practical placement requirements is verified by comparing the specifications set out in point 1) with the actual circumstances.

• If, during the course of the work placement, there is a significant change to the specifications set out in point 1), the student is obliged to report this to the practical placement tutor, who will decide on the next steps.
• The verification is carried out by the work placement supervisor or, where applicable, another person authorised by the work placement supervisor – if the student is working on their Bachelor’s thesis during the work placement, this person may be their supervisor.
• If the subject matter of the work is protected as company know-how, the conditions under which the inspection will take place must be demonstrably agreed with the company in advance.

4) If the employer discovers a gross breach of work duties on the part of the student, they shall inform the practical placement tutor; such a finding may constitute grounds for not awarding credit.