Undergraduate Engineer Review

I enjoyed my placement most of the time. The amount of experience and knowledge I've gained is varied and valuable and I will help me in my continued study and post graduation. Sometimes the days dragged but overall I enjoyed working alongside a great team delivering an interesting project. I am glad I did the placement and think it's been a valuable use of my time

Initially there was an expected settling in period where I was proving myself to be useful and opinions to be worthwhile but soon I felt like a proper member of the team and as often as valued as any of my other colleagues. Although it was important to have the mindset of a permanent member of staff in order to not allow my opinion to go ignored due to my junior status.

It was a very independent placement so although support was available it needed to be requested and I was otherwise mostly left to my own devices. In the cases where I requested guidance it was provided but sometimes I had to ask for clarification as sometimes the support was vague. I would have hoped for more support in some cases but normally when I asked for extra explanation it was given.

At some points through the year the amount of work was overwhelming due to a lack of structured management meaning I was working for multiple managers. Even in the quieter parts of the year there was always a long list of work to do, meaning I was always busy. I essentially self managed my time which I enjoyed but sometimes meant that as I picked up work from different managers the to do list was expanding more quickly than it was being done!

I was given a lot of responsibility during my placement, as much as a full graduate engineer/manager. I managed packages of works to completion and had to work independently on different engineering elements required for the project. I was left to my own devices once a task had been allocated to me to decide how to do it, these sorts of decisions ranged from techniques or surveying and setting out to working out how to satisfy environmental requirements of the authorities.

The skills I acquired have given me a broader understanding of the role of a civil engineer on a construction site and although perhaps not so useful in my academic modules this coming year (3rd year BEng), they have given me a more holistic view of what is required to deliver a successful project. In the long run after graduation what I have learnt this year will give me a head start in both technical knowledge and relating to people in the construction industry.

The atmosphere was often jovial in my immediate office due to good colleagues. Due to situations beyond our control the pressure was on the site as a whole meaning the atmosphere was sometimes stressed in the greater office. Throughout these tensions the relationships between staff stayed mostly polite creating a good environment to work in. Staff often went for a drink after work and enjoyed each other's company.

There was no formal placement scheme meaning we were mostly making it up on site to see how I could fit into the postgraduate system of development. I understand a formal system has been organised for this year which means the students will probably have a more directional and tracked placement. On site I was able to pick the areas of work I wanted to get involved in and form my placement around this.

The company were open to providing any relevant training I requested and I appreciated this opportunity to learn transferable skills. I went on the following courses: First Aid Rescue from heights (Tower Crane Rescue) Asbestos Awareness Harness training Edge protection training. As you can see varied areas of training were available and my line manager allowed me to request any relevant course.

The company offer a 4 year graduate scheme which I could progress onto. The graduate scheme could take me across the UK and Ireland as John Sisk and Sons is primarily an Irish Company. The scheme would involve 3 to 12 month placements on different sites. I see that this would offer me more varied experience on different sites but I think it could be difficult to be mobile for another 4 years after university. The route of direct employment is also a potential if I decide I want to progress as an engineer in one location.

People would sometimes go for a drink after work. Otherwise team bonding nights out sometimes happened. Sometimes a subcontractor would take us out for dinner when a relevant stage of construction had been reached such as topping out the concrete structure. The nature of construction means people lived across a large geographic area so socialising was a bit more difficult than it may have otherwise been.

I lived at home but London is inherently expensive. Travel expenditures were covered by the company. Some of my graduate engineer colleagues were living in shared houses (of varying quality) but this was still expensive. Lots of property is available in London and can often be found near to the site. A pint in London is £5+ almost anywhere, but value socialising can be found.

London has a good night life but don't forget the early morning starts on site (Before 8am)