Engineering Intern Review

I had a bit of a rocky start due to lack of support and a worthwhile project to complete, however for the last 7 months of my placement I was working on projects that really interested me and that I gained a lot of knowledge from. I would recommend telling your manager where your main interests lie to see if they can accommodate that for you as you will definitely enjoy the placement more.

It was a bit of a mixed bag to be honest. Some colleagues really did show that they valued me and I became really good friends with them. Others I heard spoke about me poorly without coming to talk to me about it first. On the whole the majority of people were lovely. I guess you'll never be able to get on with everyone.

I found that the support was there when I asked for it, however I feel it would have been good to have been given more support when I started the placement as that was when I needed it most. Not knowing what was expected from me or what I should be doing was hard at first, so a little more support would have been good. Towards the end I felt like I didn't need the support as I was confident in finding my own work and managing my own time.

Every day I came in to work with something different to do. Some days it would purely be computer based work, others would be purely factory based whilst other days would be a mix of the two. Some days I'd end up doing 12 hour days to make sure that I got work done as I was extremely busy, however other days I'd be asking people if they needed help as my workload wasn't great. It was mostly up to me to find work for me to do as someone always did need help.

From the word go I was given a fair amount of responsibility. I was given a project regarding looking at waste reduction which was a big issue for the factory at the time. I found it difficult to complete the project successfully as I wasn't aware of how things should be done, so maybe I was given a bit too much responsibility too early. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing though as I experienced a great learning curve over that period.

The increase in my confidence and communication skills were probably the greatest things I developed, more so than any technical skills. I used to be quite a shy person and held back from meeting new people and doing new things. Since my placement I have overcome that shyness and I am happy to throw myself into new things. This will definitely help me in my masters year and beyond.

The atmosphere varied depending on who was in. I was lucky enough to sit next to a colleague who was always up for a laugh and who I could talk to about anything ranging from issues at work to what he was doing on the weekend. Even at stressful periods the atmosphere never reflected it. Sweets were frequently handed out around the office which did cheer you up if it was a quiet day. The majority of people were very friendly and no one batted an eyelid if you wanted a quick chat with a friend.

The placement was organised in the sense that I had everything I needed from day one, such as my own desk, PC, laptop and email account. When I arrived I was already booked in for an appointment with occupational health as well as for other induction meetings. Where I think the placement lacked organisation was in the plan for what I would be doing over the course of the year. Like I said, it was a slow start. When I got busier it was due to me going out and finding projects that I could do.

I don't feel I can really comment much about training and development. I can't remember having any official training whilst on my placement. Development on the other hand I believe occurred naturally as the placement progressed. I could see a massive difference in myself and the way I conducted myself from the start of the placement until the end, be that due to the company or my self development skills I don't know.

This topic never really came up whilst I was on placement. All I know is that the company will fast track me through to the assessment centre if I do apply for a graduate scheme, be that for the same discipline as I worked in for my placement or a new discipline. I wish more information was given to me about this topic.

There was one other intern, a graduate and a couple of direct entry students who started at the same time as me. We did arrange meals out and nights out, not just for birthdays or leaving dos, but also just to meet up and hang out. My department organised a Christmas lunch out which was good. It might have been an idea for the company to arrange an evening out near the start of the placement so that the students socialised a bit sooner into their placement.

I lived in Sheffield for my placement. I rented a 3 bedroom terraced house with my sister for £700 altogether. Food and drinks were reasonably priced, and there always good deals on at restaurants.

Living in Hillsborough the nightlife wasn't great, but it was easy to get the tram into the city centre.

Not unless you actively looked for them.