Business Analyst Review

The work placement was really beneficial because you get real responsibility early on. This makes the job more enjoyable because you feel like you are making an impact with what you do because you can see directly how your work impacts the wider business. Unilever is also a really fun place to work with a chilled environment.

I was amazed by how valued I felt in the team and around the office. I expected to go and have to earn my place in the team to get respected however everyone treats you with respect and listens to what you have to say. You don't feel like a placement student at all because no one treats you like one!

You are given a line manager from day one who sits with you all day in the same area of the office. They are happy to help show you how things work as well as more formal training. However, the most obvious thing to me was how happy everyone across the team was to help you if your manager was busy or wasn't around.

I was generally reasonably busy however some days were quieter and some days were more busy. There's always extra things you can get involved with if you feel like you don't have much to do and equally if you feel like you have too much work there is always someone around to lend a hand. Unilever employees don't tend to work later than 6pm so it's not like you're ever overworked.

During my placement, I was giving large amounts of responsibility, managing the undertaking of a number of high profile projects. However, I did always have the support of my line manager and consulted her on any important decisions made, but largely worked autonomously. Interns are very much valued and seen as regular employees, therefore are given real responsibility from day 1!

During my placement, I have learnt many invaluable lessons and gained transferable skills that will benefit me no matter what profession I enter. These skills range from stakeholder management to communication and networking. Whilst my placement will not directly impact on my degree, I believe there is no substitute lesson for your first job and at Unilever, you will gain skills that will carry you for the rest of your career.

There was a good atmosphere in the office and everyone is very welcoming. There is good team spirit and the atmosphere is very much geared at getting the best performance possible for the company. Whilst there is a good atmosphere in the office, there are not many team events or socials outside of working hours.

The work placement is well organised and as it is a well established placement programme, it is well structured. Although well structure once on the programme, the communication before starting is limited with information on location and team delivered very late (making it difficult to sort out accommodation, although the company does support with this).

You are able to attend lots of training sessions throughout the year by signing up on the online training manual. This allows you to attend things outside your normal job role and explore other areas of the business. Much of the training is given by external personnel but they still allow placement students to attend which is great because you can learn about things outside of unilever too.

Very appealing. Unilever's Future Leaders Programme (grad scheme) offers many opportunities across the business but is very competitive to get a place on. You do rotations during your 3 years with Unilever so you can see other parts of the business. It's such a lovely place to work so securing 3 years with the business isn't a bad start.

Not massively. I worked in the Leatherhead office so socialising was quite difficult as it's in the middle of nowhere with no pubs/bars etc in walking distance. Events were organised but it was always difficult to find a time when everyone could attend because people tended to go away for the weekend and make evening plans. There are some events organised among IPs but I went on more nights out with my team.

I lived nearer London than Surrey so this was obviously expensive however Surrey isn't much cheaper and therefore I'd say it was very expensive to live here. About £700/month just for rent and bills. Commuting was also very expensive and Unilever don't pay for this. It's a fun area to live but definitely isn't good if you're looking for a value option.

The Leatherhead office is quite out in the sticks so socialising was quite difficult as it's in the middle of nowhere with no pubs/bars etc in walking distance. You can always arrange nights out in London and meet with friends from work but it is more difficult to go for work drinks than it would be if you worked in a London based office where you can walk to the pub after work.

Yeah lots. Unilever employees do a lot of volunteering so you can get involved with various schemes such as movement to work and young enterprise among others. This means you can take time away from your day job and get involved with things that interest you. The business are generally happy to support any extra curricular activities.