Electrical Summer Placement Review

Whilst on placement I enjoyed the work assigned to me. I was given an individual project to completed on placement. This project involved using a variety of skills including some researching of theory, design work, project planning and finally carrying out the designed testing. This variety has made the placement interesting and challenging.

Whilst on my placement I felt fairly valued by my colleagues. The work I was doing I felt was fairly useful to the company and I felt I was able to give my thoughts on matters due to my different experiences to others that were well received from my colleagues.

During my placement the section I was placed with were at a very busy period of a project. Support was offered to me but if I needed it I would have to ask and would not be chased up which was sometimes difficult knowing how busy everyone was during this period.

At the start pf the placement (first week and a half) before being given my main project there were a couple of afternoons where I was a little short on work. After this as I had been given a project which I had some control over the duration of it was up to me to define the size of the project in order to fill the placement and so was the right amount of busy.

During my placement I was given a project which would be used for future projects and would have a positive impact on them. This work was part of a development which was going to be implemented as normal procedure in the future and was given to me to trial this and write a technical report on it.

During my placement not only have I been able to develop my interpersonal skills, written and verbal communication skills through reports and presentation and also applying technical skills. It has also informed me about the steps I need to take in development in order to progress my career to chartership beyond university.

During my placement the general atmosphere within the office was relaxed. The office I worked at had flexi hours meaning you were allowed to arrive as late as 9am but had to work the required hours during the week. The office has a casual Friday where casual clothes were allowed to be worn. Everyone was willing to have a chat but there was a strong work ethic.

I feel as though the placement was well organised with trips to other offices arranged, projects with other summer interns arranged and opportunities to speak to graduates about the grad scheme. Before starting work I was contacted by a graduate 'buddy' who answered any questions I had. Upon arrival a 'placement plan' document had been prepared.

Whilst on the placement the company was keen to give us as much information about the graduate scheme as possible. This involved a 'networking lunch' at which we were able to speak to departments heads as well as graduates on the grad scheme. The future employment prospects were very appealing with a well thought out scheme oriented around personal development. An assessment centre date had also been arranged for us with the company.

Whilst on the placement I was fortunate to have 2 other placement students in the same office. As a group project was set for us to complete together this allowed us to get to know each other. The other students were friendly and willing to socialise with a few nights out arranged.

The cost of living in the area was neither expensive nor cheap. I rented a room through spare room as the office was not close enough to commute from home. This was a similar cost to renting at university. Socialising in the area was not expensive with cheap nights out possible.

Night life in the area I was working was limited. Having come from a university where there were a large number of clubs/bars that were great to go out in this was a bit disappointing with a couple of clubs and decent bars but not much variety/stand out great nightlife.