Team Member Review

I enjoyed the placement, mainly due to the high level of work I had to undertake, which required scientific knowledge and understanding, but not a ridiculous level of specialisation. I also found the work life balance excellent, allowing me to spend free time in the evenings and flexi gave me a lot more of a summer than other employers would have

I felt well valued. Understandably, initially there was a reticence to engage with me, as my level of ability was unknown. However, as time progressed, I was trusted with more difficult projects and this allowed me to push my horizons. I always found colleagues willing to listen to my ideas and desires.

Support was somewhat sporadic, primarily because my line manager was not from a scientific background. This meant there was often something of a communication break down in our discussion, and issues I encountered were hard to convey. One of my projects also displayed a lack of direction and several changes in direction in a few weeks

There were several days where I felt fully utilised and highly engaged with the work I was carrying out, however, quite regularly I found myself without much to do. In particular, this manifested when I was waiting for (perhaps more busy) colleagues to pass work back to me after review.

I had a degree of responsibility, however, there were not many opportunities for out of team work. I rarely spoke to people outside of my team, however, when I did I was trusted to talk and to use my abilities. Overall, considering the level of the business, I was happy with this.

Some useful skills were available to be improved. In my case, the improvement in my coding abilities was perhaps the most useful skill. I spent a significant amount of time working in python both with and without a GUI, which is a skill I will be able to utilise for many years to come

Positive and friendly, an open plan office with pretty informal scientists allowed for a good atmosphere, though there was a level of crypticness due to the classification systems and so forth. I also found the air conditioning difficult as it was for such a large area regulating your own temperature was difficult, which often led to some heated encounters

It was largely adequate, it seemed obvious that I was the first intern the team leader had had and he initially had a very ambitious program set up which somewhat fell through. I would have prefered a clearer starting point with more clear objectives, and perhaps some more variety to the work

I don't believe there were any particular courses I was sent on to improve my skills. Perhaps the largest investment the company made in me was to obtain my clearance for the next ten years at an SC level. I was also offered a scolarship which would have enabled me to take a graduate place with the team.

I would certainly consider returning to this company in the future, however, I currently have other plans for after my graduation. I would say if I returned to the UK that I would seriously consider this company for employment, despite the somewhat low salaries that are on offer, particulartly because of flexi time

The social scene was good, but groups formed in the students fairly quickly and I spoke to perhaps six other students often. With small teams, colleague socialisation was difficult mainly due to the age gaps within the teams, so despite efforts by the company, socialisation with colleagues was very limited

The cost of living was pretty high, and I spent approximately 120% of what I earnt on living. This wouldn't be so bad if the information about other students came earlier so that there was more time to search the market for somewhere to live rather than being forced into the local university

As I lived in the centre of a city the nightlife was pretty limited, most student bars had closed for the summer and the remaining bars catered more towards tourists and professionals, meaning it was expensive and high end. However, a few nights out were good fun and not too expensive

I was asked to join a local rowing club, and a cycling club was also suggested but the high costs of membership, which had to be annual, combined with the risk of bike theft edged me towards not joining, instead choosing to spend my evenings at the gym and working on my forth year project