Research and Development Intern Review

This Summer placement was super. The work I had to do was out of my comfort zone and so it stretched me to improve many qualities. Clear objectives are set at the beginning of the placement and regular reviews with line manager help to stay on track. The work was interesting, plentiful and had significant impact on the company.

I felt very valued by my colleagues. Everyone had equally important work to do and projects of great significance to carry on with. I was included from day 1 into team meetings, presenting to the team and getting to know them. They treated me like a valued employee, rather than an intern who was only around for 12 weeks. This allowed me to feel like a valued member of the team.

The support was endless. Of course, you have to use your own initiative, but where needed there is always someone there that can help you out. Daily meetings with line manager allowed me to get the support I needed or provide feedback on work I was doing. Communication is key and this helped the placement a lot.

On a day-to-day basis life was fairly busy. Each day something new is going on with regards to the projects I was working on, so progress was always being made. Being a global company, you also have to keep up with different time zones and work accordingly. The work was challenging and rewarding.

I was given a lot of responsibility. One of Unilever's Standards of Leadership is Accountability and Responsibility - so in order to demonstrate this well, employees are given many opportunities to do so. Projects assigned to employees have a great deal of depth and allow the employee to really stretch themselves.

They will help me a lot. I learned invaluable skills that I could never have learned in the classroom. They can be transferred back to team work tasks, presentations, networking events and discipline for my degree programme. I have also learned many skills for the workplace. Things such as networking, coordinating in a larger global team and regularly coordinating with line manager are highly transferable skills.

The atmosphere in my office was great. Although I did not work directly with many people in my office (my global team were based elsewhere) I got on well with my colleagues. There was a good balance between work and chatter. We also had regular treats in the office to keep everyone motivated!

The internship was well run. My line manager was organised and informative, giving me information about the project in advance of the placement starting. She ensured everything ran smoothly. The objectives are clear from the beginning and the prospects for progression were a clear goal/target. However, the admin side was somewhat of a let down in different aspects: holidays, pay, poorly informed.

We were given lots of personal development opportunities. We had regular talks from senior leaders, telling us about their experiences and affording us a chance to question them about their opportunities. We also had online training modules to do, all relevant to the role each intern was working in. The personal training was geared at what we wanted to get out of it - so our feedback was crucial to planning events that were helpful to us.

Future prospects at Unilever are very appealing. Unilever have a Future Leaders Programme (UFLP) aimed at graduates which is a very competitive and excellent programme. By doing a Summer Placement at Unilever I have the opportunity to be potentially fast tracked to the Discovery Centre for the UFLP (based on performance) which is a very appealing incentive. I have had a great experience with Unilever and will definitely consider applying for the UFLP.

Yes there was. There were about 15 interns in Liverpool and we had regular catch-ups and meet-ups. This was a good way to network and socialise with one another outside the working environment. We arranged regular nights out and events, to ensure everyone had the opportunity to meet up and relax.

The cost of living in Liverpool is relatively cheap compared to other cities. Accommodation was relatively cheap and we managed to find accommodation close to the city centre (and close to the train station - taking the train every day for work). As Liverpool is a small city, the interns regularly met up and socialised after work or at the weekends. It is a vibrant city and the locals are all very friendly!

In Liverpool, the nightlife is very good. There are almost always events on at the weekends and they were a good way to socialise with people outside of a working environment. There are lots of different bars and clubs - depending on your preferences, which was good to suit a large group. It is also relatively cheap.

Many of us joined the gym outside of working hours. It was a great way to stay fit and change environments after a day in the office. Many of the activities at Port Sunlight run throughout the year (as many people are on holidays on and off during the Summer) so I think there were less activities than hoped.