Mechanical Engineer Review

by Atkins

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3/5
  • The Role
    3.6
  • The Company
    3.2
  • The Culture
    1.8

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
  • I really enjoyed my time at Atkins. I leant a lot in regards to working in the industry and how to manage my time while also improving on skills I had started to develop in university. All of my colleagues where open and friendly which significantly helped me to enjoy my time there.

    4/5

  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
  • My colleagues often kept me up to date with work on projects and I was constantly being given the opportunities to visit numerous on going sites and watch multiple seminars or CPD's which provided valuable insights into the industry. Despite this I feel like a lot of the work which I was given was probably the simplest and I often felt like I was being a nuisance with my constant questions .

    4/5

  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
  • My colleagues and managers where constantly providing me with useful hints and advice through out my work, sometimes even taking me through step by step. I found this incredibly useful especially since I felt like there was a huge gap in knowledge between myself and the others, although like I said, I felt like a nuisance sometimes.

    4/5

  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
  • My colleagues and higher ups often gave me tasks to do for each project I was working on, these seemed like the simplest tasks which meant I often finished them early and then had nothing to do for the rest of the day, especially if the higher ups had left work early or something. During this time I often went on Lynda.com to try and improve my skills on software such as Revit.

    2/5

  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
  • During my placement my main responsibilities involved making sure that I was always acting efficiently and effectively, was always in work before 9:30 and then stayed a minimum of at least 7.5 hours each day. It was also up to me to log what I worked on each day, these involved using timesheets to select the job you worked on and the amount of hours you spent on each job. It was my responsibility to make sure this was done before Thursday each week.

    4/5

  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
  • I leant a lot in regards to working in the industry and how to manage my time while also improving on skills I had started to develop in university, I often went on Lynda.com to try and improve my skills on software such as Revit. I was constantly being given the opportunities to visit numerous on going sites and watch multiple seminars or CPD's which provided valuable insights into the industry.

    5/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
  • There was a constant open and friendly atmosphere in the office. Everyone seemed carefree despite being in a time where massive redundancies hit Atkins. This definitely improved everyone's work and efficiency in the office, everyone was always being social between desks and people brought sweets and snacks in for everyone on the regular.

    4/5

  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
  • Organisation was where Atkins was lacking. Its organisation wasn't bad by any means but I have seen better. I was originally supposed to start on the 5th June but was postponed to the 12th due to poor organisation, I was also never introduced around the office when I first started, this made things a little awkward between me and some of my colleagues at the start.

    2/5

  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
  • I was constantly reminded about Atkins' graduate application which enables students who have worked on a placement, such as myself, to apply to Atkins in the future once graduated university and join onto the graduate scheme which enables many benefits as well as a full time job. I also had the opportunity to watch numerous CPD's which acted as seminars for manufacturers to show of technology they have made and technical data.

    4/5

  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
  • Subsidised Canteen

    Sports and Social Club

    Subsidised/Company Gym

    Staff Sales/Staff Shop

    3/5

  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
  • Atkins' graduate application which enables students who have worked on a placement, such as myself, to apply to Atkins in the future once graduated university and join onto the graduate scheme is very intriguing and tempting to me. This graduate scheme includes numerous benefits as well as a full time job at Atkins. I have enjoyed my time spent here at Atkins and definitely would consider working here in the future.

    4/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
  • Since Atkins is split into different departments, such as Transport, Infrastructure and Energy, I found that I was the only placement student (I knew of) in my department. Despite this my colleagues were very sociable, I was often invited to play football or go for a drink Friday afternoon. Outside of working hours though not much happened. For my 8 weeks at Atkins, there was only one social event which was disappointing.

    2/5

  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
  • Aztec West is an industrial park found in Bristol because of this the prices were quite high for a meal in the shops surrounding Atkins. A sandwich could cost around five pounds in some places. I never ate in the canteen because there was no variety, although the same could be said for the stores in the nearby mall compared to the ones in the centre. There is also no places (that I know of) to socialize in Aztec West.

    2/5

  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
  • During my 8 weeks of working for Atkins, there was one work social. This all meant that I did become friends with my colleagues at work but lacked a more grounded social connection with them. In Aztec West there is little to no nightlife, minus the odd pub we go to at lunch.

    2/5

  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
  • I was often asked by my colleagues to play football outside of work but despite this and the occasional event planned by the society, not much happened outside of work. During my 8 weeks of working for Atkins, there was one work social. This all meant that I did become friends with my colleagues at work but lacked a more grounded social connection with them.

    2/5

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Details

Internship (1 Month+)

South West

July 2017


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