Indirect Purchasing Review

I enjoyed working for BMW because it is a great experience before I go back to final year. It is a shame that I couldn't spend more time working for them as I have experienced and learnt a lot within the four months of being there. The field I worked in, indirect purchasing has gave me a great insight in how the operations works and the level of processes.

Everyone in my department are very friendly and we help each other out with work rather than relying on yourself for everything. Furthermore, the working environment is calm and relax.

Throughout my internship, whenever I needed help with work, my team is always there to assist me and we work in parallel so we all are on the same understanding. Also, having weekly meetings and individual meetings enables me to interact with my team further on various topics.

In regards with the work load, I would consider it to fluctuate. Usually, I would have enough to keep me occupied throughout the day and sometimes it is quiet.

In terms of responsibility, all work that was given to me, I had a sense of responsiblity to complete it on time and the best of my ability, as the team trusted me to completing work.

I believe the skills I have developed is a great stepping stone for myself to develop in the upcoming future.

It is a nice, calm environment to work in, and you get to enjoy your own music if you choose to do so freely. Everyone speaks to each other and we can have a good laugh and conversation. Depending on your personality, anybody can fit into the team without any issues, shy or active. This makes getting along with people very easy and I certainly enjoy being able to snack whilst working.

As the company as had this scheme for many years, the overall set up is very good. The organisation tries to involve you as much as possible with the department, like you was if you worked for the company full time, giving you a good insight on how everything works rather than set tasks that aren't involving the team.

There is a graduate programme at BMW which would be good for newly graduate students to apply for and I might consider applying myself as the company is great on your CV. The main organisation is more focused on Germany so if you would like to work in Germany, heres your chance. And being an international company, theres job opportunities across the world.

Because the internship is based in Oxford, the cost of living is relatively high. The pay definitely covers that and you still have plenty to spend however, when comparing this to my hometown Birmingham, it is alot more expensive and the "larger" food supermarkets are better accessible with a car unless you live close to one.

Activities outside are solely dependent on whether you get involve with organising events with people in your team. However, there are events especially for interns which is a weekly event and you get to meet other interns in different departments. And as many interns are international, you can arrange visiting different parts of the UK during the weekend.