Placement and Work Hours Log

Who this is for

Placement hours, counted and signed off. Each shift goes on one line with its times, break, what you did and your supervisor's initials, and the summary shows how many hours are done and how many are left against the total your course sets.

Students on a placement, practice block or work-based module who have to evidence a set number of hours, and anyone keeping supervised hours for a qualification.

What this helps you track

• Every shift worked, with times, break and hours
• What you did on each shift, in a line you can expand later
• Supervisor initials against each entry as you go
• Hours completed and hours still to do against your required total
• How many weeks of the placement are logged

How to use it

1. Write your name, course, placement provider and supervisor, and the number of hours your course requires, taken from your handbook.
2. After each shift, fill in the date, the week of the placement, start and finish as decimal times and any unpaid break in hours.
3. Note the main activity in a few words and ask your supervisor to initial the line before you leave.
4. Hours per shift, the total and the summary are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, add the hours column at the foot of each page.
5. Hand in or photograph the signed pages at the points your course asks for, and keep the originals.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How do I write the times?

As decimal hours on a 24-hour clock: 13.5 for half past one in the afternoon, 8.25 for quarter past eight. A shift that finishes after midnight is handled, as long as finish is earlier than start.

Where does the required total come from?

From your course handbook or placement agreement. The sheet supplies no number of hours; it only compares what you have logged with the figure you enter, so check with your course team which activities count.

Does a break count towards the hours?

Whatever you enter in the break column is taken off the shift. If your course counts paid breaks or study time differently, enter the break as zero and note the reason in the activity column.

Is a supervisor's initial enough evidence?

It depends on your course. Some ask only for initials on each line, others want a signed summary or their own form as well. Use this as your running record and follow whatever sign-off your placement handbook describes.