Systems Engineer Industrial Placement Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my whole year working at NATS. From the first day I was put on a live real project and are treated as an employee. With the year consisting of two 6 month placements I was able to learn a large amount about various parts of the business within which I could apply some of what I had learnt through uni.

Throughout the whole year I felt extremely valued by all of my colleagues. From day one the two teams I worked in both treated me as an equal employee and allowed me to take on work as an individual. As well as this people were always willing to help or answer questions when I was stuck.

I was given fantastic support throughout my placement year. On joining I undertook a week long compulsory training to give me an overview of the work I be carrying out. From then on whenever I needed help there were numerous people I could talk to. I was also assigned a line manager as well as a technical manager. I had regular meetings with the line manager who checked up everything was ok whilst my technical manager gave me work and was always willing to help with that.

Generally you are very busy throughout the day. As you start off there is a lot to take in so a lot of the time is spent learning however as you adapt to the work surroundings and project I took on more and more work. As I was working on real life projects there and treated as an employee there was always enough work for me to get on with.

Throughout my placement I was given a lot of responsibility. As I grew in confidence and learnt more and more about the projects, I was given more responsibility. This involved running and chairing meetings in my first 6 month placement as well as writing requirements for new systems to then in my second placement being given the chance to represent the company in Madrid, working closely alongside the supplier.

As my placement was in predominantly systems engineering and not aerospace engineering (which is my field of study) a lot of the technical aspects could be directly applied. I could however, use the general engineering principles I had learnt and apply them to real practice. As well as this throughout my placement I learnt an extreme amount regarding how projects are run as well as generic system engineering principles which will not only help me in future jobs but is helping me now with my current studies.

On the whole the atmosphere was pretty good. Everyone in the office was very friendly and willing to chat. At the same time though the noise levels were never too loud so people could focus and concentrate on the work. With it being an air traffic control company it is important that the atmosphere is very relaxed to keep the controllers calm and this relaxed atmosphere occurs throughout the buildings.

The general organisation of the placement was extremely well set up. There is a very friendly scheme manager who is in charge of all the placement students, graduates and apprentices and the scheme is well respected within the company. The scheme has a very good structure containing two 6 month placements allowing you to rotate around the business. As well as this there are numerous scheme activities to get involved which add to the experience.

The company ensure you get the full training you require and invest money into it throughout the scheme. In the first week each student undertakes a week long course to become familiar with the job. From then on throughout the year you are given a training portal within which are all the required bits of training you need to complete before leaving. This training ranges from CBT to courses to forums.

Being an industrial placement students gives you a great insight into the work and future prospects. Each student must undertake an assessment centre at the end of their year to come back as a graduate. A major benefit of coming back as a graduate is that the grad scheme is reduced from two years to one year thus meaning it is quicker to qualify off it and go into full time work. I would love to go back as a graduate and continue working my up within the company.

Within the scheme the scheme organiser organises an infamous bowling session within the first month for everyone on the scheme to get to know each other. From then on various members of the scheme set up different social events (usually once a month) for us all to get together and meet up outside work. As well as this within the department we occasionally went for team meals. The scheme becomes a very close knot community and great friends are made.

For my year I lived in Portsmouth where house prices aren't to bad. I lived with 3 other placement students and we paid £390 a month each. Some students chose to live in Southampton where prices are fairly similar however from both these places there is a 20min drive into work (or 30min train and 10 walk). With both these places being major cities there were plenty of places to socialise and meet up. In order to walk to work Whiteley is an option to live however house prices are much more expensive here and there is much less to do.

Whiteley where the company is situated is a very small village with not much to do. There is a shopping centre containing shops, restaurant and a cinema all of which are convenient for lunchtimes and after work. As most people choose to live in Portsmouth or Southampton however, these are both student cities so the nightlife is very good with lots of clubs, pubs and bars.

The company run a sports and social club within which are numerous clubs you can get involved in varying from football and badminton to a choir. The membership is very cheap and this includes use of the onsite gym. As a scheme we also regular tried to meet up and do activities outside of work to socialise. This varied from bowling, to meals to indoor play areas.