UK Marketing Coordinator for Bing Ads Review

My placement year at Microsoft was incredible, and I would highly recommend for students who are passionate for technology to apply! I learnt so much about about my role in marketing, the company and the industry, and I can definitely say I have vastly developed both personally and professionally. I have also had the opportunity to attend fantastic events like Advertising Week & Future Decoded, and even went to Berlin, Paris & Barcelona for corporate conferences.

Even though you're an intern, you're treated like a full-time employee. Every member of the team is extremely supportive, and they were always willing to spare their time to help me with any project or even talk me through their role and experience within the workplace. Most importantly though, your colleagues value your work which feels very rewarding, and they are always willing to provide you with constructive feedback to help support your development.

Your team really cares about you and your development. I had weekly and monthly one to one meetings with my manager and our director, respectively, to go over my workload, professional and personal development and how I am coping with the placement. The management team always encouraged that "no question is a stupid question", which made me feel much more confident about being inquisitive and getting my ideas across.

I was in a small team of 3, so I was quite busy on a daily basis. It varied a lot depending on the seasons; we were very busy during Christmas time and it had quietened a lot during the end of summer. However, when it was busy it was really fun as you were exposed to many exciting responsibilities and were surrounded by a great team to support you throughout.

A lot of responsibility was given to me during my placement. Your team wants you to develop, therefore they give you responsibilities that help you do that. From running events to setting up social content, I was given tasks that did not only help develop the business, but also my skills and abilities. Being given this amount of responsibility really keeps you on your toes as you are constantly learning new things!

Firstly, it was a great experience to apply the theory I learnt at University to practice during my placement. Now that I am back at University, I can relate so much more to different business examples, and I also feel much more confident in asking questions and giving my opinion during lectures.

Even though the office was very busy, it was always very fun. If you needed a break, there was a coffee area, an xbox machine and even a ping pong table just a few steps away from your desk. The setting was very modern, you could even write on some walls! Most importantly, the people always made it a friendly and fun atmosphere to be around, which makes work a better place.

Microsoft really invests into its interns. Its placement programme consists of 3 development segments: 70% is developing/learning on the job, 20% is developing through a 101 team (a volunteering project which you work on outside of your daily job role), and 10% is from networking with other team members. All of these have really invested into both my personal and professional development. Throughout the placement year we were also encouraged to take different trainings such as MOS exams, or in any other areas of our interest which would help in our development. I was also very lucky to attend some corporate off-sites and conferences abroad, which consisted of different training classes, speeches and exercises.

The social scene amongst colleagues was great. I was based in London with 5 other interns and we were all very close even though we worked in different teams. We also socialised a lot with the Reading interns through different work events and also by visiting them in Reading, and having them visit us in London.

I lived in London so the costs of living were quite high. However, I shared a flat with two other interns, which helped in terms of saving money. The London offices are right by the Venice canal, so they are in an area with quite a few restaurants and bars which are great places to go to during lunch time or after work for a snack or drinks with the team.