Summer Student Review

The placement was a really good experience. It provided a great insight into some of the daily tasks an engineer really does. I was also given the opportunity to go on a site visit as well and see what a real working site is like. Both environments have given me so much more context for some of the learning done at university and a better awareness of how the various disciplines work and fit together to create an end product.

My colleagues made me feel really welcome from my first day. It was a relatively small team and it allowed me to get to know them a bit better. They were also more than happy to help with any technical assistance or anything about processes and procedures and any general questions regarding engineering, i.e. understanding Eurocodes, reading a drawing accurately especially reinforcement drawings.

My Senior Engineer was brilliant. He would answer any questions I had and give me guidance on my tasks. The manager was also very good. I never really had a lot of contact with him but he was generally available if it was important.

For the most part I was very busy. There was a few times when there was no real work for me but that gave me the opportunity to go online to the company intranet and look at the various guides, documents and help available to all company staff. Having a chance to look through it allowed me to find excellent presentations on bridges that gave me a really good introduction to the various concepts and ideas that need to be considered during any design.

As the placement went on I was given more responsibility. My work was always checked though but that is standard procedure. But knowing that your work is going to be checked gives you the confidence in making your own decisions during your work knowing that any mistakes will be caught down the checking line.

Having the opportunity to read professional reports and papers has given me a much better idea of the standard I need to aim for in my university work. I have also realised that you are not expected to go into a job out of university having to know everything. The degree gives you a basis to work from as I have found that most of the real learning I will do (and have done) will be on the job experience.

The general atmosphere was quite informal. I was expecting I much more rigid structure but people would just pull up a spare seat if they had any questions or something to tell you. The Senior Engineer was just behind me in the office and I could just ask him to give me some help without there being any sort of hassle or feeling as though you were interrupting or being a nuisance.

Very good. I was informed about 5 months before I was due to start that I had a placement. I was given updates regularly when I had to complete various induction procedures before starting the placement in plenty of time. When I arrived for my first day, I was shown around the office and given all the Health & Safety briefs. I had my company email set up before I arrived and was almost ready to start working immediately.

There was no formal training or development. Most of my training was done while doing the work that was assigned to me.

The chance of working in the future with Atkins is very exciting. Although I have only seen one small part of the company, the opportunities to work on large and small projects in various locations around the globe obviously has appeal. I believe in Atkins, as with most engineering companies, that your prospects are as good as you want them to be. I think Atkins has the resources and organisation to give me a lot of chance to improve my abilities and use them.

I was the only placement in my office at the time so there was no chance to meet other students.

I was living in student accommodation for most of my placement. The cost of living wasn't excessive but being in a city centre can come with premium pricing depending on where you go.

I don't know about opportunities regarding activities after work. I never asked anyone about anything like that.