Control and Automation Intern Review

My internship was completed entirely remotely however I felt connected and included in my team's work. I felt the work I received was meaningful and challenging. I was given a lot of support in completing my work and I was allowed (and in some cases actively encouraged) to pursue further interests and have career conversations with experienced professionals throughout my time in the internship. Overall the balance of technical work and soft skills development was very good.

Every colleague I approached or emailed was happy to have conversations that were both technically and career driven. I feel I would have had greater team interaction if the internship had been a face to face experience however the activities and events organised by my project team and the early careers team went a long way to making me feel included. I never felt like I could not approach a team member or stuck without anyone to help with a technical query.

From the outset of the internship I had pastoral support from the early careers team, equipment support from the IT&S team and technical support through both a line manager and a supervisor. I felt privileged to be surrounded by experienced engineers. I did not feel like I was insignificant or not being included. Working with engineers who have been in their discipline for 25 years or more was a fantastic learning experience and I feel their experience was excellent in supporting my internship.

There were a wide range of activities available throughout my internship. These included keeping connected calls with leadership teams, lunch and learns with grads and fellow interns, project calls around my project work and soft skills workshops such as presentation skills development. This gave a good level of interaction with various parts of the business despite the remote setting. Further to this, my project itself was engaging and kept me busy right up until my final presentation in my last week.

I feel I was given a high level of responsibility during my internship. I was trusted with remote access to confidential documents and expensive software and equipment. This ensured I had every tool available to aid with my project work which was essential for me to gain a full appreciation of what the real job would be like full time. On occasion I felt some calls were pitched at a low or patronising level however these tended to be few and in the early parts of the experience.

The skills I developed will help me greatly in advancing with a career in engineering. I got a fantastic level of exposure to what true engineering practices are like and how work can become efficient and agile with large-scale companies. I do not think the work will benefit my degree greatly as my university work tends to be heavily theoretical however the internship showed me how my university learnings can be applied in a very practical way.

I was not in the office however I did feel included working from a home with the formation of intern families, chat with my buddy and daily meetings with my supervisor.

I think the internship was incredibly well organised and executed. The early careers team were in contact in the time leading up to the internship and before day 1 I had been set up with a virtual desktop in a support session and been in contact with my line manager and supervisor. The final exit process, presentations and interviews were handled smoothly and I am hoping post-internship communications will live up to the same standards.

I feel the company put a lot of time into my development. My supervisor had over 20 years experience in engineering and was a key member of my team, she was willing to spend multiple hours a day with me which was a huge financial and time investment in me. Further to this, interns received soft skills training from external professionals and were encouraged to use the My Talent and Learning portal to undertake courses of interest and receive certificates of completion for taking these beyond the internship.

The internship was pitched from the outset as an assessment for entry on the the graduate programme. The investment made into the interns is very encouraging and there is typically strong intakes from the internship scheme moving into the graduate scheme. The experience has also been fantastic in terms of improving skills and my attractiveness as an employable person to companies outside of BP. I feel my career prospects are strong whether that is with the company on moving on in the future.

The social scene was not great given the virtual setting of the internship. There were efforts in the formation of an intern social committee however events with any more than 5 people would become very awkward as it is too difficult to have a large group and flowing conversation in a virtual environment. I feel this aspect if the internship would have been greatly improved if the experience had been a face to face one.

I lived at home during the internship so the cost was not any different.

I was at home for the internship during a pandemic - night life was not a priority or even a consideration.

Despite the virtual environment there were a surprising amount of activities to get involved in. There were lunch and learn activities where we could network with other interns or learn about something completely disconnected from project work. There were multiple intern committees that we had the opportunity to be a part of, one such committee I joined was the fundraising committee and it was good fun to organise a virtual running and walking challenge amongst my fellow interns.