Sandwich Placement Student Review

by Savills

Best Student Employer

Rating

4.6/5
  • The Role
    5.0
  • The Company
    4.2
  • The Culture
    4.5

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
  • My placement year has been throughly enjoyable and I have gained a significant amount of knowledge of which i can apply to my final year at university and beyond. I am very pleased to be able to use all experience obtained this year for my Assessment of Professional Competence to competency level 3 in Property Management. Further to my day job, i have enjoyed the opportunities provided by the wider company, this includes participating in: inter-company ping-pong team competition (before being cancelled by Covid), the Savills with Schools initiative and being involved with social events and parties held by the company.

    5/5

  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
  • I felt valued by my colleagues, gaining strong relationships with each member of my immediate team and within the wider Property Management department. This resulted from a high level of trust, loyalty, integrity and effort between myself and members of my team. I was given a high level of responsibility and received credit for work carried out. This includes advising and liaising directly with high profile clients on all matters and further developing a strong relationship with them - as is a high priority to Savills.

    5/5

  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
  • My line manager provided excellent support and guidance throughout my placement. They ensured that i always understood my tasks and should i have any issues i was able to raise them. This extended to my wider team who were also very accommodating. I found it very beneficial that the entire Property Management team were always happy to give advice and share their knowledge. This ensured that i could ask anyone in the absence of my team members or if i wanted a second opinion.

    5/5

  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
  • I was always given a high workload and therefore i was very busy which i highly appreciated. My team gave me a variety of jobs and a high level of responsibility. This ensured that i could develop my time management and organisation skills as well as developing a high level of trust with my team as to ensure that the work was completed to a high standard and on time. In the event where i completed my work i would always ask for more which was always provided to me. As well as the personal skills which grew here, this ensured that I learnt as much as possible in as many ways as possible.

    5/5

  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
  • I was given a high level of responsibility in my role as a placement student. I worked very closely with the surveyors to the extent where i would advise clients myself and lead on some of the jobs, for example, under the Legal and General Bishopsgate Fund i would lead on our arrears call for many of the properties which had been left in my responsibility to chase arrears and collect the rent. This was particularly prominent during Covid (March Q day and June Q day) where i negotiated tenant concessions. Generally, i had the day to day role of a surveyor, completing reporting on all property management matters, liaising with tenants, landlords, contractors, insurers and utility providers etc.

    5/5

  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
  • My placement had helped me develop skills in the following places to a high level: prioritising work, verbal communications, visual presentations, ability to accept responsibility and adapt to different roles, setting and achieving goals, prioritising work loads and time management, forward thinking and anticipating problems, generating ideas, designing, technical knowledge, critical and reflective thinking, quality of work and finishing tasks set or undertaken. All of the above skills are necessary for my final year at university where i will be undertaking academic reporting, presentations, working in teams and individually. Furthermore assisting in my application to graduate jobs/roles.

    5/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
  • The atmosphere within my department was very friendly and professional and found that this was a great place to learn from others. I felt that the atmosphere enabled me to involve myself more in projects and learn skills from other surveyors. For example overhearing telephone conversations helped me to develop knowledge of industry terminology and improve my professional language. Furthermore, I found that while the ambiance was professional it was very fun and sociable which meant that i was able to develop strong relationships with my colleagues.

    5/5

  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
  • The placement was set up to a high standard. I found that from the application process right through to the end of my placement, Savills provided help and support when required and provided all relevant and necessary information to ensure that the placement ran smoothly. The outcome and feedback to the assessment day and interview were timely and appropriate. In general the placement was well organised and line managers provided good varied work to aid us in our future careers and final year at university.

    5/5

  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
  • From the beginning of the year we were provided with mentors as well as structured seminars which i found very helpful. This meant that i built a strong foundation of knowledge and i was well equipped for starting my APC. Furthermore i found it very helpful that we could utilise the Savills in house lessons for Savills systems and other applications. I found the Microsoft Excel training particularly helpful and beneficial to my work of which my excel skills have now improved greatly.

    4/5

  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
  • Sports and Social Club

    Subsidised/Company Gym

    National Travel

    Company Parties/Events

    Staff Sales/Staff Shop

    Above 25 days holiday

    3/5

  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
  • I will be applying to the Savills Graduate Scheme and it would be my first choice of company should I be selected. Before my placement year i had completed three weeks professional work experience in total at the Nottingham and Birmingham offices within a variety of teams. The placement year has further has solidified my desire to work at Savills as a graduate and beyond. Having spoken to many of the graduates, recently qualified surveyors and superior colleagues, i have heard very high praises of the training and support Savills provide in addition to my own experience of this which i feel are some of the most important traits a company should have. Furthermore, the opportunities Savills provide and their encouragement of entrepreneurship tied together with the clients they have provides an unbeatable environment to grow as a professional and find niches in the market as well as providing the best services to their clients.

    5/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
  • Myself and a couple of the placement students in my department organised a few social events for all of the placement students in Savills Margaret Street and City. This included drinks and dinner evenings. Most recently we organised a dinner in Soho for the remaining placement students for the end of our placement year. We have now developed a strong group of friends - predominantly in surveying, however others in financial services - who we will be in contact with for the rest of our lives.

    5/5

  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
  • The cost of living was high in comparison to my university city and where i am from. However i found that living costs were matched by my salary and therefore i was able to go out whenever desired.

    4/5

  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
  • I thoroughly enjoyed the nightlife near the office, there are copious amounts of pubs and bars with great service. One can go out any night of the week and have a great night out whether that be with colleagues or clients. Focusing on the Christmas parties, the venues were fantastic and were a great place to meet new people and catch up with others. The atmosphere was always very enjoyable and easy to get to and from.

    5/5

  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
  • From the start of my placement Savills presented all activities and opportunities to us in a seminar. It was very easy to contact the relevant parties and get involved. All societies were very friendly and welcomed new members. Within the company i was participated in the inter-company ping pong team at the Greenhouse Centre. This was a great way to meet and socialise with new people within the company and competitors from other companies I also participated in the Savills with School initiative which i felt was a great way to share my passion for Real Estate and making the industry better known.

    5/5

    Report this review

Details

Placement (10 Months+)

Investment Banking, Data Science, Customer Service, Environmental Science, Intellectual Property Law, Property Management, Retail, Surveying

London

August 2020


View More Reviews