If you have been looking for a SIWES placement for weeks with nothing to show for it, you are not alone, and it is rarely about how good you are. Most students do not have an uncle at an oil company or a cousin in a bank. This guide offers an adaptable plan for searching without existing contacts: who is responsible, where to look, how to approach firms, and what to do if the deadline is close.
A placement search comes first; keep the report in view once real training begins. UniDraft helps organise your confirmed placement activities and guidelines into an editable SIWES document. Start your SIWES report when you have the records, or review the workflow now. It does not find employers, arrange placements or write activities that did not happen.
The short answer
- Plan early; three to six months is an optional planning window, not a rule and ask your SIWES coordinator on day one how your department handles placement.
- Use three or four channels at once: lecturers, the ITF employer request list, personal networks, and targeted cold outreach. Do not rely on one.
- Send specific, short applications to a manageable shortlist and follow each employer’s application and follow-up instructions.
- Get the school paperwork in place before you apply, because most firms will ask for your introduction letter.
- If you are stuck, tell your coordinator early, with a record of what you have tried.
Who actually finds the placement: you or your school?
This varies by institution and even by department, so do not assume either way. Some institutions run SIWES stakeholder forums where employers meet students, and some departments keep an informal list of firms that have taken students before. Confirm the actual arrangement at your institution rather than assuming a national default. The institution's SIWES unit then provides the introduction letter and the paperwork.
One published example: the FAQ page of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) assumes students obtain their own placements, mentions a stakeholders forum as a way of easing placement difficulties, and says acceptance letters should be submitted early enough to allow at least 24 weeks of training. Your institution's rules will differ in detail. The point is that the deadline is real, and it usually sits earlier than students think.
Your first step is therefore a conversation, not a search. Ask your coordinator:
- Do we source our own placement, or does the department place some students?
- What is the deadline for submitting an acceptance letter?
- Which documents do you issue, and how long do they take?
- Can I be placed outside this state, or remotely?
- Is there a fallback list if I cannot find a place?
Write the answers down. If a rule matters, ask for it in writing or find it in your department's SIWES handbook.
When to start, and a realistic timeline
Start three to six months before your attachment period if you can. Two reasons: firms that take students every year often fill their intake early, and everyone in your department is searching during the same few weeks before the period begins. The earlier you are in front of a company, the less competition you face.
A working rhythm looks like this. In the first fortnight, get your coordinator's answers and request your introduction letter. In weeks three to six, build your CV, draft a base application letter and a shortlist. In the following weeks, send applications in batches of five, so you can learn from the replies and adjust. Follow up once. If you have nothing by the time only a month remains, escalate.
Where to look: realistic channels
There is no single channel that works for everyone. Combining a few gives you the best odds.
Your department, faculty and lecturers
Ask lecturers, your HOD and the SIWES coordinator directly. They often know which local companies, labs or agencies have taken students from your programme, even where there is no official list. A lecturer may be able to suggest a relevant contact; an introduction does not guarantee an offer. Turn up with your CV, not just a question.
The ITF portal and ITF area offices
The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) coordinates SIWES nationally. Its SIWES portal has a page titled "View Employers Request for SIWES Students" under the students' menu. It lists organisations that have registered a request, with their sector, location, contact details, ITF area office and the disciplines they want. That makes it a shortlist generator: filter for your discipline and your state.
Treat it with care. When we opened the list, it included entries that looked incomplete or unreliable, so verify each employer by phone or a visit before you build your plan around it. Nobody legitimate charges you to access it, and you should not pay an "agent" to pick from it for you.
ITF also operates area offices across the country. The FUNAAB FAQ says students submit the SPE1 form, completed by the employer, to the nearest ITF area office. Area offices are also where you go with questions about the ITF side of your placement. Check your logbook's inner cover or your coordinator for the office that covers your placement location.
Family, alumni and community networks
Personal and alumni networks are one possible route. Ask relatives, family friends, older students in your department, and people in your church, mosque or community groups whether their workplace takes students. Then ask a second question that people forget: "Who do you know who works in [my field]?" Networks work through second-degree introductions.
What matters is that the placement is relevant to your course. A placement that gives you two months of filing and errands will make your logbook and report thin, whoever arranged it. Read how to fill your SIWES logbook before you accept a role, so you know what evidence a good placement gives you.
Cold outreach to relevant companies
Identify companies in your field, then contact them directly by email or in person with your CV and application letter. The letter is where most students lose the opportunity, so see how to write a SIWES application letter that gets read.
To build a shortlist, search for firms by what they do rather than their size. A civil engineering student could look at construction firms, consulting engineers, state ministries of works and material testing labs. A computer science student could look at software houses, ISPs, banks' IT departments and telecoms vendors. A nursing or medical laboratory student needs an approved health facility. Some professions require placements to meet regulatory criteria, so check with your department that the organisation qualifies.
LinkedIn and email
Searching by industry and location, then messaging a department head or HR contact directly, can make the request more relevant than a generic mass email, without promising a response. Keep the message short and specific: who you are, your course and institution, the dates, what you can do, and one sentence on why that firm. Attach your CV, and offer to bring the introduction letter.
Remote or hybrid placements
For computer science and some tech-adjacent programmes, some companies now take students remotely. Confirm with your SIWES coordinator first that your institution will accept and document a remote placement. It is not universal, and getting it approved after the fact is much harder than before. Ask also who will sign your logbook and how supervision will work.
Choosing between offers, and spotting a bad one
If you are lucky enough to have two offers, compare them on what you will learn, not the brand name.
| Question | Good sign | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Is the work relevant to your course? | They can describe your tasks | "Just come and see" |
| Who will supervise you? | A named person with a role | No named supervisor |
| Will they sign your logbook? | Yes, weekly or as required | Vague or "at the end" |
| Are they asking for money? | No | Payment for the "slot" |
| Will your school accept it? | Coordinator confirms | You have not asked |
Be cautious about anyone charging a fee to secure a place. If a payment is being requested, speak to your SIWES coordinator before you send any money.
What makes a placement request stand out
Firms that take students regularly receive many requests, often identical. A few things genuinely help:
- Be specific, not generic. Naming the department you want and why, even in one sentence, separates you from copy-pasted requests.
- Show up prepared. Bring your CV and your school's introduction letter, dress properly and be ready to speak to whoever you meet. Firms remember students who took it seriously.
- Follow up once. A polite follow-up a week or two after first contact is reasonable, and often what gets a response. Emails get lost and walk-in requests get forgotten.
- Have documents ready before you start, not after a company says yes.
A worked example (illustrative)
Here is the difference between a generic and a specific opening message. The company name is a placeholder.
Weak: "Good day sir, I am a 300-level student seeking a SIWES placement in your esteemed company."
Stronger: "Good day. I am a 300-level Electrical/Electronic Engineering student at [your institution], looking for a six-month SIWES placement from [month]. I noticed [Company] maintains power distribution equipment in [city], and I would like to work with your maintenance team. My CV and my school's introduction letter are attached."
The second version tells them what you want, when you are available, why them, and it makes a yes easy. Do not invent details about the firm. If you do not know what they do, look it up first.
Documents to have ready before you apply
Institutions and companies ask for slightly different things, but having these ready saves time once a firm responds:
- Your CV
- Your institution's SIWES introduction or request letter (request it early, because it can take time to process)
- Your own application letter, tailored to each company
- School ID or other proof of studentship
- Passport photographs, where requested
Once placed, you will meet more paperwork: acceptance letters, and the ITF forms your school explains. See what the SIWES SCAF form is and what SIWES Form 8 is so you know what to expect and when.
Common mistakes that cost students placements
- Waiting for the "right" company. A relevant, real placement beats a famous one that never replies.
- Applying to three firms. Response rates are low. Expand a relevant shortlist where feasible; no application count guarantees a place.
- Sending the same letter to everyone. Firms can tell.
- Not asking for the introduction letter early. Then you cannot apply in person.
- Accepting a role your department will not approve. Check first.
- Not recording the search. If you need help later, a list of who you contacted and when helps your coordinator argue your case.
If you genuinely cannot find a placement
This happens more often than official guidance admits, and it is not a personal failure. If you have tried the channels above and time is running short:
- Go back to your SIWES coordinator before the deadline, not after. Ask whether there is an approved fallback list or another authorised route; do not assume one exists.
- Widen your search geographically. A placement in another city, with a relative or contact there, is often more realistic than holding out for one location.
- Ask about extensions or late placement procedures. Some institutions allow a documented short delay instead of penalising you outright. Ask rather than assume the worst.
- Lower your ambition on the brand, not on the relevance. A small firm doing real work in your field is better than a big one that gives you nothing to log.
- Don't go silent. Give the coordinator the dates and outcomes of your applications so they can advise on the actual options.
Do not let it slide, because SIWES is assessed and how SIWES is graded is worth understanding before you decide how hard to push.
After you are placed
Placement is the start of the work. Confirm your start date, your supervisor's name and your reporting time in writing. From the first week, keep your logbook daily, because it becomes the raw material for your eventual SIWES report.
If you are in engineering, the engineering logbook examples show what a good weekly entry looks like. Computing students can compare with logbook entries for computer science. When the report is drafted, the free university format guides show what your school expects.
Where UniDraft fits in
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