Product Marketing Undergraduate Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my 12 month work placement with VWFS because I was given the freedom to grow into my role at my own pace. I always felt supported at any given time with the organisation, and if I ever needed help in a specific area, my colleagues were always very patient and offered tonnes of support until I could approach a task confidently.

I always admired my colleagues who mentored me throughout the year at VWFS. As a group, my department were very professional, encouraging and supportive. My team always made me feel like my opinion counted - this always motivated me because I was only an undergraduate with limited experience. I appreciated being valued and I was always recognised for my achievements and contributions within the team.

I had regular 1:1's with my line manager to ensure I was reaching my personal objectives and the businesses objectives. In these meetings we would discuss future developments, my work load and how I was adapting in the role. I always found these sessions useful because I find it difficult to talk about myself; however VWFS found personal development very important. As a result, I had chance to reflect on my year on a monthly basis.

My daily tasks varied on a weekly basis - which very much depended on my work load and priorities for the week. I attended many external meetings as well as internal meetings with other departments and agencies - sometimes I had many of these back to back which kept me very busy throughout the day. I have never felt like I was twiddling my thumbs with nothing to do on my placement, the team always ensured I had small BAU tasks or projects to keep me going throughout the year.

During my placement year I have had many opportunities to showcase and practice my skills. I have been given large amounts of responsibility such as stock management, budget management, and maintaining relationships with third parties and agencies. I also have had the chance to run with my own large-scale projects to help develop the customer journeys for our product offerings. Of course, there's a limited amount an undergraduate can achieve, however VWFS are very encouraging and enjoy challenging their young recruits.

The Learning and Development department set up all of the undergraduates with a year jam packed full of useful training courses and workshops to enhance our skills and capabilities. One course I specifically benefited from was a Powerful Presentations workshop, this course was 2 days long and challenged us in many forms to help us practice with our presenting skills. University's are always seeking new ways of grading students, and I know that presenting is one of them. Therefore, I believe this course will aid me for future assignments but also for when I start applying for graduate roles.

The atmosphere and general working culture at VWFS is very relaxed, positive and friendly. I never felt like I was in a strictly corporate environment, I think the whole company have really tried to overcome that feeling within the office. Although the business is still very professional, there is a very welcoming ambiance when you walk through the door.

The placement had a very good on boarding process at the start of the year which helped all of the students settle into their roles and departments successfully. We always had touch points and events throughout the year to ensure the undergrads were working together collaboratively, as well as with other areas of the business. This was also supported by the Learning and Development department who helped to arrange training and development courses throughout the year.

Training we received: - Intermediate Excel training - Advanced Excel training - Powerful Presentation workshop - Networking Basics & Communication - Innovative thinking workshop - Interview Skills & CV workshop - Google Analytics Training - LinkedIn training - Car Safety Course - E-learning training modules (Health & Safety, Treating Customers Fairly, Financial Crime and Information Security)

VWFS offer endless benefits if you were to join the company full-time after graduating. There are graduate schemes on offer in VWFS and VWG across the road if students were to be interested in other areas of the business. VWFS like to retain their talent and offer development opportunities for internal employees.

There was 27 undergraduates for year 2019-2020. This meant that there was a very social scene for us all. Especially because many of the undergraduates had moved large distances across the country to be in Milton Keynes, it was very nice to know that others were also in the same position. We all regularly met up out side of work to socialise and have fun.

Being so close to London the living arrangements aren't strictly cheap, however since many undergraduates were moving to Milton Keynes, we all stuck together and found shared housing between us. There are many cheap shops to help cut down on household costs, and to have a cheap night out, there's a few wetherspoons in town to help save the pennies.

There is one big club called pinks in town. However, there are many bars and pubs that help create a more social scene. The hub offers a large range of restaurants that is perfect for cocktails and food. In Broughton, there's a pub called the Hungry Horse, many of us go there after work to socialise and eat food.

I joined a gym at Willen Lake and attended workout classes during the week after work. There's many cinemas, restaurants and shopping outlets in Milton Keynes to keep you entertained. Most of the undergrads enjoyed meeting up for walks around Milton Keynes after work to build up their step count.