Actuation Systems Engineer Review

I enjoyed my work placement very much mainly due to my colleagues providing a beneficial atmosphere to work in and their willingness to answer any questions I had. The flexi time scheme is brilliant and allowed for a really enjoyable work/life balance.

The standard of work expected of me was high and as such I have been able to contribute to the team. I was able to participate in meetings and presented my work to the relevant design authorities who then gave me direct advice on what I did well and any improvements that were needed. My work was then used in a PDR after my placement finished.

I was paired up with a buddy who had done similar work and was able to pick their brains on an unrestricted basis regarding content, style and methodologies. My line manager was brilliant and pushed me to deliver not only a good standard of work but also work that is useful to the company. I was sent on a software training scheme which was really well run and gave me a better understanding of the software.

I was an original project deadline of 11 weeks but that got reduced to 5 weeks due to customer needs and as such those 5 weeks went quickly with plenty of work to be done but I never felt like my time was stretched - A good amount of busy

I was responsible for my project but had extremely useful guidance from my buddy, line manager and other people in the office

Since my project was focused on low level design and the software side of things, I didn't find much cross-over between the work I did on the placement and my studies at university (Aerospace engineering). At first this was frustrating as I felt I was inhibited in showing my strengths, but as the placement went on, I realised that the skills I was gaining were way more beneficial to me regarding professional development than any of the modules at university. In short I have made a weakness a strength and can always do the more aerospace aspects when needs be.

Relaxed yet focused. There was always someone up for a chat, either work based or just general, similarly there were people going to meetings, travelling to different sites and working hard providing a continuously changing atmosphere.

From my perspective, the placement was very well organised with my line manager putting serious prior thought into what work I could realistically output and ensuring that the work could be used by the team. The placement was also run really well from an HR perspective, with forums and functions allowing for the summer placements to mix and get to know one another.

They sent me on a 2 day training course in Bristol which provided me with a firm understanding of the software and its uses, I have no idea of the cost incurred by the company but it can't have been cheap especially as my expenses totalled £300+! After my project had been delivered, I was asked what I'd like to do, and a new project reflecting my wishes was created, allowing me to experience using Matlab code in a professional environment. I was granted permission to work overtime to achieve my project deadline demonstrating the company's willingness to invest in me.

Very! I am keen to work here again (If they'll have me). The graduate scheme is competitive in terms of salary, but the money isn't the only factor. The ability to use flexi-time to create long weekends and just general days off is a massive factor as I value my social life and external activities. Even though I have been here for a short time, I can see pathways opening up within the company which will allow me to develop the skills I want to become a more complete engineer.

With respect to fellow summer placements, there probably was a good social scene if I had spent more time in Stevenage, prior to coming I had heard rubbish reviews of the town and so booked a lot of my weekends away... For the record the town isn't that bad and surrounding places like Hitchen are really nice. With respect to my colleagues there was a great social scene, with a few pub lunches and out-of-work-hours get togethers.

Coming from Manchester, the general cost of living in Stevenage is pretty high... For what I was paying for a two bed flat in Manchester, I got a spare room in a house in Knebworth (3 miles from Stevenage)! Cinema tickets are also double what they are up north and however drinks wise (mitigating student drinking places) the prices were similar.

Only had a couple of nights out due to my not being in Stevenage for a lot of the weekends, but it was alright, nothing mental... However you are only 40 mins from London and the last train (apart from Sunday) is past midnight (just don't drink so much you end up in Newcastle!)

I joined the Rock Climbing society which had weekly trips to climbing walls and a few longer trips to parts of the UK and further afield... There are numerous more societies to join, but that was the only one of interest to me.