Rapid Prototype Developer Review

by IBM

Best Student Employer

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3.4/5
  • The Role
    3.8
  • The Company
    3.4
  • The Culture
    2.8

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
  • When I was working on a project and got really stuck into them, I really enjoyed it - I'd suddenly realise it was 5pm. There were some amazing weeks, but the rest of the time it was just work. Not necessarily bad, not great, just okay. I had the odd week where I struggled with a difficult project but that was not frequent.

    4/5

  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
  • I felt like a valued member of the team, like I had some experience to offer when people needed help, even if I didn't actually have much. The whole team was really nice and friendly, there was no-one that I didn't get on with. I think I've made some good friends.

    5/5

  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
  • It's not so much that he didn't provide support, it's more that it wasn't really needed. A lot of the job is learning as you do it, and that's actually the best way of learning it. If I ever did feel out of my depth or had a problem I couldn't ask anyone else, I would be comfortable asking them.

    3/5

  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
  • It depends on the week. If I was on a project, I would be perfectly busy all day for a week or two. Nothing that I would have to stay late for or anything, it was just I had enough to be getting on with. Other weeks, when I wasn't on a project, they could get quite boring doing bits and bobs with other people's things.

    3/5

  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
  • I was given full multiple week long projects by myself working with a real client and client rep. I was treated just like any other employee I would say. It was slightly daunting to begin with but it's a challenge you need sometimes to progress in life.

    4/5

  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
  • I've learned to become a semi-professional web developer. I've learned a huge amount about the one thing I knew near to nothing about how it worked - the web. This will definitely help me with my computer science degree, helping me build my final year project as well as any future projects that I want to bring to life.

    5/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
  • We would chat when we weren't busy. There wasn't anything crazy going on the whole time, it was an office. But it wasn't really boring or anything.

    3/5

  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
  • There wasn't much organisation that needed to be done other than arranging who was doing the projects. We had team meetings to do that once a week.

    4/5

  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
  • They put me on a month long training course called the Digital Skills Academy that gave you a not shallow, and broad explanation on multiple Watson services as well as basic web development training. I have also sat in on multiple "lunch-n-learns" teaching things like programming best practices and chat bots.

    4/5

  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
  • Flexi Time

    Subsidised Canteen

    International Travel

    Company Parties/Events

    Staff Sales/Staff Shop

    Working from home

    3/5

  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
  • They've offered that I extend my placement for another month, as well as being fairly open with wanting me to come back and have a job with them as a graduate. Based on what my tutor said when he spoke to my manager, as well as how I believe my colleagues feel about my work ethic, I think I have quite good prospects with employment with them in the future.

    4/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
  • There was, however, I was not involved in it. If I had started this job with the mindset that I have now, I would have tried to have been much more involved but I was a lot more socially anxious. There was monthly free drinks at a nearby bar, as well as weekly drinks with a lot of the other placement students I believe.

    4/5

  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
  • I worked in South Bank, Central London. I didn't live in central London and I commute in so I save money that way, but on Fridays I get some food from a market nearby, and it's around £10 for a small box of steak and chips. It tastes really good though, totally worth it.

    1/5

  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
  • This answer would be the same as the social scene answer. There was one but I was not involved with it.

    3/5

  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
  • It's central London so there tons of things to do outside of work. For example, when I started to become more sociable, I went to a JavaScript and AI event at Monzo Bank HQ.

    4/5

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Details

Placement (10 Months+)

Computer Systems Engineering, Computer Science

London

April 2019


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