Process Engineer Review

I had a really positive experience working for Sellafield Ltd at their design offices in Warrington. I gained a great deal of professional work experience and was able to contribute positively to the business throughout the course of my placement.

I was made to feel welcome from the first day within my team and the extended workforce. My role involved a lot of interfacing with other engineering disciplines; almost everyone I worked with was approachable and happy to spend time helping new starters become familiar with the business, technical concepts and design work. There was plenty of social interaction around the office and the occasional work night out.

The placement scheme (especially the process engineering scheme) is well structured and the focus is clearly on personal professional development. I was supported in my professional development throughout the year by development of performance management agreements with the management team, development objectives to work towards over the year and iChemE mentoring. My line manager specifically was excellent, he always took the time to explain tricky concepts to me and ensured that I had interesting and meaningful work to do.

Some days were busier than others. My role involved providing design support to emergent work on plant so there were times when I was really busy, but also days when nothing new came in for a short while. However in quieter periods, my line manager ensured that I still had work to do, and he was happy to support me in attending training courses relevant to my role, or STEM related activities.

I was given real work to do from the outset, and was involved in producing calculations and design deliverables for live projects throughout the placement. I was given more responsibility as the year progressed; this felt like a natural progression as my capability to produce design work improved.

Working in industry and specifically in a design engineering environment exposed me to a large range of equipment, processes and technical engineering concepts, and allowed me to develop as an engineer in a professional environment. My time at Sellafield Ltd has helped to provide context to studies at university, improving my ability to visualise concepts and apply them in an industrial context. I learnt a lot during the placement year and was encouraged to complete several internal company training courses.

Almost everybody was friendly and chatty, while the general atmosphere of the office remained professional as to be expected in an office environment. Generally speaking the atmosphere was good, if a little quiet at times.

For me the set up of the placement was great, I started at the end of June (though some people started later due to delays in completing their security clearance) and the year was well organised. There was a regular and considered structure to the placement year, with development centre and development objectives to work towards, plus 6 monthly reviews.

I was supported in several training opportunities such as becoming a STEM ambassador and other internal company training courses. My line manager supported me in attending training and there was compulsory training to do when we first started the placement and when first visiting site.

I am hoping to hear from Sellafield Ltd soon about potential graduate opportunities. Doing an industrial placement with Sellafield does not guarantee a place on their graduate scheme, however it does offer an excellent opportunity to work towards this and you are offered a lot of support to help you achieve this. I personally had a really positive experience with the company and am excited by the prospect of coming back as a graduate.

There was some socials organised amongst the placement students and graduates, though there wasn't a hugely lively social scene at Risley. The graduate support group regularly organise socials and activities though, and there were some good department nights out / christmas parties!

I lived in central Manchester and commuted to work. Compared to other major cities in the UK (London) the cost of living and socialising is not high at all. I found my salary to be sufficient (just) to maintain a decent social life and pay the bills etc. You could live in Warrington or Risley if you liked which might be cheaper, but the social scene isn't really comparable to Manchester or Liverpool.

Risley or Warrington does not have much going on in terms of nightlife. Manchester is a great night out and there is always something going on and places to go. Liverpool is also a pretty good night out and is just a train away.

At Risley there is a pretty decent lunchtime running community, and a few different football matches are regularly organised between departments, graduates etc. I didn't really get involved with much outside of work other than department nights out etc, but I think the opportunity was there if you were keen to do so.