Summer Student Review

10 week work placement was a good enjoyable experience. It was a perfect opportunity to see the day to day running in an office of a global company. This was especially valuable as the company is currently going through a reorganisation. There was also the value of speaking to recent graduates about the recent graduate scheme.

I felt highly valued by my colleges, being treated as a useful member of the team, and as a peer, not as a student. The first day I was introduced to the whole section, with everyone being friendly and inviting. This continued throughout the placement, with everyone in the office being welcoming.

For the first few weeks the guidance was high and supportive. This slowly reduced over the placement, however less guidance was required as the project was on going and a new concept to the office. This meant little guidance could be given, however when required and asked for, help was given.

The amount of work to be produced was of a good balance given the length of the placement. However, this was let down by the IT department. Software was required for work which was not on the company system, this was requested early in the placement and was never produced for work to be done. This meant that free trials on a colleague's computer had to be used when available. When his desktop was not available the ability to produce work was very limited

The amount of responsibility given during the placement was good. In my opinion this was the correct amount for a summer placement student, with individual work being completed. Guidance and support was always given when requested and work was always checked when a personal accountability may have occurred. This reduced the liability but gave an opportunity to work on live projects.

The skills developed will be helpful in the fact of being able to work both individually as well as part of a team. A higher level of computer programming and learning new software was developed, and this will give a further skill set which can be used during both my degree as well as in a graduate placement. This is especially true due to the work being done being new and upcoming within the company as well as the industry

The general atmosphere in the office was very good. The office was quiet and a perfect working environment. There was enough chatting between colleagues for the office not to be dull and boring, but this was of a low volume level as not to be distracting whilst working. The office facilities encouraged a good atmosphere over the lunch hour due to good facilities.

The work placement seemed to be very well set up. This started with the placement interview, with the task to be complete being explained thoroughly. This carried on throughout the placement, with a high level of detail for tasks being given, with a set plan of what was to be completed. This seemed to be the best set up for the summer placement students in the office, with some seeming disorganised.

The company invested in me very well. Opportunities within the business were created for me, which would not have otherwise been available. In the first week, a personal training program was followed, including use of company equipment. There was also an opportunity to increase the level of personal training by entering into training programmes for software such as AutoCAD products.

The future prospects within the company are high. The graduate scheme works well, with guidance and support to become chartered. There are encouraging bonuses such as a joining bonus along with an extra bonus once chartered. The joining wage and also company benefits such as discounts, healthcare and schemes such as bike to work are encouraging the appealing. Some final year summer students have been offered contracts.

A good social scene was evident within the office. Socials are organised every couple of months, with a night out being planned. Other social events such as Christmas dos have been organised. There seems to be good relationships between colleagues outside the office organising things such as football teams as company bike rides.

With the office being on the edge of the lake district the cost of living and socialising is high. The house prices are high with the distances travelled to and from work being large. With the area being remote, the distances to large cities are great. The cost of drinks are not cheap, especially within the lake district itself.

The nightlife in the area isn't brilliant, however this depends what you are used to. It is very quiet and unvaried compared to large student towns and cities. The nightlife is also very expensive compared to some cities and other areas of the country. However, the pubs are brilliant for the ability to sit and have a drink, rather than a night out.

There were only a couple of opportunities to get involved. However other colleagues have talked about more events which occur at other times during the year. This includes sports teams such as football, and charity events such as biking events. Other activities have been organised outside of work, however these have been organised by colleagues individually and not through the company system.