Chemistry and Efficiency Industrial Placement Review

My experience at EDF Energy far exceeded my expectations. I have spent my year working hands-on at an operating nuclear power station, with a fantastic mix of practical work on plant and engineering brain work at the desk. I've generally found my work genuinely interesting and relevant to my studies.

I have worked in a fairly small team and felt well valued. Of course it's natural that this comes with time and at the start of the placement you will mostly be in a learning role and of less use. However, as I gained experience and confidence I felt like my contribution was genuinely valued and in team discussions I have always felt that my voice is listened to.

What impressed me most about my placement was the amount of time and energy that was put into my development. My supervisor was supportive from the start and we had monthly meetings to discuss accountability, support and well-being if needed. I also had a line manager who I worked with closely and was exceptionally supportive - they would always make the time to answer my questions and I never felt like I had been thrown too much in the deep end. Additionally I had a mentor who I worked with to sign off Mentor Guides which are the formal training programmes specific to your job role.

As with any job, the workload varied depending on what was happening with the plant. Generally, I had about the right amount of time to get through my to-do list though. Again, this came with time and no placement student is busy for their first few weeks, However, once I was properly into my placement I never felt I had nothing to do.

At the beginning I spent most of my time assisting with and then eventually solo working on routine jobs that the department requires on a regular basis. There are definitely jobs that no-one wants to do but have to get done (which might be quite trivial) and it's understandable that I was given quite a few of these, especially near the start when I wasn't qualified/experienced to take more responsibility. However, as I gained experience and confidence I was given a solid amount of responsibility with a few different projects to take ownership of. I felt that a good amount of trust was put into my work.

Through my experience in the role and a great amount of training, I have gained a solid understanding of my station and the wider industry which I will take forwards to the start of my career. I have gained practical skills that I wasn't expecting as my job was quite hands-on. However, most valuable of all are the "soft skills" I've gained from my experience of the work place - how to communicate with influence and confidence and to work cross-functionally with a wide range of people.

The team was a mixture of ages and backgrounds and the atmosphere was always friendly but always very hard-working.

The main difficulty I had was in the lead-up to the placement when I was not given a start-date until soon before the placement which made it difficult for me to organise accommodation etc. Once I got there the placement was well organised and my supervisor had a check-list of induction tasks which gave it some structure at the start.

The time and energy put into my development I felt was above and beyond my expectations. I had a mentor with whom I worked through Mentor Guides, the formal training programme specific to my job role. I also went on a three week course for new starters. There was also an early careers event at Barnwood for all industrial placement students. On a day-today level I always felt like my managers and colleagues had time to answer my questions and I was given a lot of on the job training.

For a graduate, the employment prospects are good and I have enjoyed my placement enough to apply for sponsorship and a place on the graduate scheme after I finish my degree. The graduate scheme is well established and as a large organisation there is plenty of room to move between sites and around the company.

I lived with other placement students (in other departments) which was good but there was not much of a social scene in my office apart from a Christmas meal and someone's retirement do.

I lived in a student house in not the fanciest of areas, paying £70 pw including bills.

Really good pubs and a few clubs, with a lot of students.

There was a football and a netball club, and pilates class.