Software Engineer Review

The ethos and people at this company were great, and I enjoyed a fair amount of the work - it felt very rewarding - but there were also a lot of work I had to do which I didn't expect and didn't enjoy. This harder, less enjoyable work didn't spoil the whole internship but it certainly made it worse.

I knew from the beginning that the work I was doing was important to the company, and I was warmly welcomed by all my colleagues. There's a real sense of community there which made me really feel like I fitted in, and that I was working on something worthwhile and important.

If it weren't for my manager, I'd have gotten nothing done. She was incredibly helpful with all the tasks I was set during my internship here and the only reason I haven't given a perfect score is that she wasn't always on hand to help (although it would be ludicrous to expect her to be).

There have been some days where I haven't had enough to do, and some days where I feel like I've had too much. It was never such a big swing that I was overwhelmed by work, nor was I ever left with absolutely nothing to work on, but it was still there and still noticeable.

I was given a large amount of responsibility and allowed to work independently for most of tasks I was given during my internship. A lot of it was done under the guidance of my manager, but she only stepped in at the times when she had to and for the rest of it allowed me to spread my wings.

I have developed a huge range of skills, not only in coding but in communication, presentation and self-management as well. Regardless of which career path I chose, I am confident that I will use all of the skills I have developed here at some point during my career and probably the rest of my life as well.

It was pretty good.

It wasn't perfect, but it was still very good. They'd clearly put time and effort into giving me as good a manager as they could, whilst still fitting me in around the rest of the responsibilities of the others in the company. It was also very well organised in terms of getting me started at the very beginning, they clearly know how to do this well.

Metaswitch has provided me with a huge amount of training, much more than I expected, and has helped me develop, both as a worker and a software dev, but also as a person.

It was agreed by both myself and the people in my management line that I was not really suited to a career in software engineering, especially not the type that they do at Metaswitch. That said, if all else failed, I certainly wouldn't mind working here again in the future.

All the interns were very welcoming and we quickly formed a very close community in which everybody was good friends with everybody else. I've also become good friends with a number of the permanent employees at Metaswitch, and they've all been great fun to be around. I will miss them dearly.

The intern house I was living in was incredibly cheap, with a rent of only £11 an hour. This meant I had a massive budget for stuff like drinks and takeaways, and I had loads of fun at the pub whenever I went. That said, there's not much else to spend money on in the town where I am as regards socialising.

I don't really care about nightlife, so I'm not sure this really applies here, but there are plenty of pubs around for those who like to go out drinking, and it's a bus ride away from somewhere which I'm told has great nightlife.

Not quite 'endless' as such, but certainly enough for even the most outgoing and active people to stay entertained. There was also great variety, not simply pub trips, but team lunches, intra-company sport events and even a Junkyard golf session (paid for by the company!).