WPP Programme Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent on the BP WPP programme. It provided me with a unique insight into the working environment at BP and allowed me to see first hand how BP employees apply their scientific and engineering knowledge to the projects they're currently working on. It also allowed to me to gain a good knowledge of the upcoming projects BP engineers are looking to develop in the future.

The atmosphere and environment the BP PEN team created during the WPP programme gave the impression that every student on the WPP programme was highly valued and would be welcome into the company if they pursued a future job at BP. I also felt encouraged to apply for a future internship or placement at BP once the programme was finished.

There was a lot of guidance and support through the week, in various area. For example, we were taught useful presentation skills, that would aid in our communication skills and also given guidance on how to answer a variety of different questions that may come up in an internship interview or a graduate interview. We were also taught a range of different techniques that would aid us in our application process.

The skills I've learnt during the week have assisted me greatly in my degree. For example, the presentational skills I developed has aided me in my design project presentations as part of my chemical engineering degree and also helped to improve my confidence and my ability to present complex ideas succinctly and in a manner that is easy to understand.

The WPP programme was exteremly well structured. At the start of the week there was a clear timetable given to us with a breakdown of what will happen on each day. Also whilst shadowing BP employees their was another clear timetable given to us so we knew what we would be doing throughout the day.

The BP PEN team managed to create a very welcoming atmosphere, allowing us to feel comfortable during our week at BP. They also made an effort to allow us to network with other BP employees so we could easily to speak them about their experiences at the company and what their roles were.

I think the firm did invest the highest quality of personal training and development they could over the short period of time they had. This is evident through the trips they took us on ( BP Castrol at Pangbourne) to allow us to see every part of the company that they could.

The WPP programme allowed me to see exactly what it to would be like to have a full time role at BP as an employee with chemical engineering degree. I was also able to see the type of project I would work on depending on the different role I had within the company and what specific area of the projects I would spend the most time on.

The shadowing of BP employees allowed to fully understand BP's culture and values. There was emphasis place on each of BP core values of Safety, Respect, Excellence, Courage and One Team. For example, the value of safety was ingrained into us through the procedure of holding the handrails as we navigated the building.

The BP shadowing was extremely valuable in terms of helping me to decide on my future career path, as I was able to meet people from all disciplines with a background in chemical engineering. I was shadowing a flow assurance engineer and a development engineer and was therefore able to decide on which role I felt best suited me by the end of the week.

The BP PEN Team reimbursed all travel expenses that was incurred when travelling to and from home to the BP office each day.

The BP PEN team set up many opportunities for me to network with other BP employees and also talk to them about their experiences whilst work at BP and their professional background. This was extremely helpful in gaining advice on how best to pursue my chosen career future path and information on what roles are available at BP.

There was dinner at the end one of the day on the BP WPP programme, this provided me with a great opportunity to network with BP employees that weren't directly related to engineers I was shadowing throughout the week. This helped to broaden my knowledge of different areas of the company such as IST. It also provided me with the opportunity too network with other students on the WPP programme.

On the WPP programme were also able to find out about other activities BP employees can get involved with outside of work, through various different internal groups which are very similar to university societies in the way in which they're are run and set up (such as the BP PEN network).

I would absolutely recommend the BP PEN WPP programme to a friend and have done already, as I believe it would provide them with a unique opportunity to see BP and experience there core values in action. I thoroughly enjoyed it and know that other student on the programme enjoyed the week also.