Placement Year Review at National Grid

The Role

Role Description

Essentially just data handling, but on a large scale, files with as much as 20MB of raw data that had to be tracked, responded to and summarised on a single sheet of paper.

1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

The work environment was amazing, but the work itself was not that interesting.

2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

The projects I was given were clearly necessary and I was left in charge of myself on them (obviously with managerial check-ups every now and again). If I was ever given an extra little piece of work to reduce someone else's work load, they were appreciative.

3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

There was a comprehensive one-one review system on support I might need and guidance to help me with my work. In addition to this I could always ask anyone in my team for a hand and they'd help when they next had 5 minutes spare.

4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

I was given enough control over the deadlines associated with my longterm project that I could adjust how much time I spent on individual things and so ensure my workload was consistent. If I felt I had too much/too little to do, I could always ask my manager to sort it out.

5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

As I continued through the year, I was given more and more responsibility on an ever growing project. By the end I was fully in charge of automating a large scale analysis process for monthly performance indicators on a certain set of safety processes.

6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

The main skill I gained was programming ability in VBA, I went from complete begginer to fluent, and so while I don't use VBA currently, I think it will help me with the computing aspect thagt is necessary for engineering. I also built up a really good knowledge of the energy sector.

The Organisation

7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

The office was fun but professional.

8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

Apart from some forms getting lost at the beginning, everything went smoothly.

9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

I was given a full set of PPE, was sent on numerous training and knowledge expanding placements, and have been sponsored for my degree.

10. What were the perks on your work placement?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

• Flexi Time
• Subsidised Canteen
• Subsidised/Company Gym

11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

Through my sponsorship I have 3 guaranteed further placements. If the departments I work in are more interesting, then I'll definitely consider their graduate program (which I get to skip to the last stage of testing for).

Other Information

12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

It was fine, I was going through some unrelated personal stuff at the time though, and so didn't end up socialising that much with them.

13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

It was 50:50, my rent was a rip off for what I got, a fairly small (8 metres squared) room with terrible shared facilities for half the price of a huge two person flat.

14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

I'm not really much of a clubber, the bar's were great though

15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

I didn't take up much of them, but there was certainly a lot available.

In addition to these questions, is there any extra information you would like to leave about your experiences on your work placement that other students may be interested in?

Nothing I can think of.

Review 96/103 for National Grid

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