Marketing Intern Review

I found that the internship was enjoyable for the most part. The people I worked with were warm and welcoming. I was also placed with several other interns at the site that I got along with which helped to increase my enjoyment. However, the site itself has quite a small number of people based their which sometimes made days boring as there were few people to interact with.

I felt highly valued by my colleagues. Not long into the placement, I was often being asked to help others with tasks. This was good as I am aware that a lot of internships have a lower level of responsibility. The higher the responsibility you have the more valued you are by your colleagues.

I reported to several stakeholders as opposed to just one line manager, however, all were more than willing to give support and guidance whenever they could. One issue, however, was that they were occasionally too busy to offer guidance straight away which was frustrating at times. But when they were able to give advice/guidance it was always useful.

My role was predominantly project based which meant that the levels of work I had would often fluctuate. If I was ever running low on work I could ask one of my managers and they would always be able to give me something to do. On the other hand, if I was busy they would extend deadlines so that I wasn't overwhelmed. This lead to a good balance of work.

I was given a high level of responsibility even very early on in my placement. This was a great experience as a lot of placement students in other organisations can be seen as lower down and aren't given real responsibilities. However, at Eaton this certainly isn't the case, this is a REAL job!

The degree I study is very much theory based and in relation to the theory behind the job I was doing I didn't gain much if anything. Skills such as organisation, communication and time-management were tested and developed throughout the placement. In this regard, the placement will certainly of helped.

The office itself is large but only houses a small number of employees. This meant that on occasion the office could seem quite empty. However, everyone in the office was friendly and easy to talk to. They were also more than willing to offer a helping hand if there were ever any issues.

The placement was very well organised as it has been running for a good number of years. Several training events take place throughout the year with the interns based at all of the Eaton sites within the UK. Managers are also very accustomed to the internship program so they know exactly what to expect from those interns joining.

I was able to take part in several training courses throughout the year. Eaton sees the placement as a learning opportunity and offers a wealth of support if you want to further your understanding of just about anything. They even have their own online learning centre called Eaton University which offers hundreds of opportunities to learn different skills.

The grad scheme at Eaton is a very appealing prospect giving Graduates the opportunity to work in a number of location in the UK and Europe. The grad scheme is very competitive with only a handful of interns picked each year. However, if you get on it's a very lucrative opportunity.

I worked with several interns at my site who I got on with very well sharing lunch together as well as the occasional night out. However, this is not the case at every site as some only have one or two interns. My experience though was very much a positive one.

I lived at home throughout the placement as I lived only an hour drive away from the office. The area in and around the site where I worked, however, was of a reasonable cost, perhaps airing on the cheaper side. There wasn't much to do though within the immediate area.

The area I worked in was located in a very small village so there wasn't much to do there. It was close to Cheltenham and Gloucester which is where we would go if we wanted to socialise after work. Both of these places have a decent nightlife. Although Cheltenham can be quite expensive.

There were a number of activities such as charitable work and sports such as football were also an option. Most opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work were organised by a small number of people as opposed to business unit wide initiatives. It also differed from site to site.