Sustainability Associate Review

I can genuinely say I loved my year at Samsung Electronics UK. I did not expect to feel so welcome, be exposed to so many different people and projects, or to gain so much experience. My placement was just over 12 months, and whilst around 5 of these ended up with me working from home as a result of COVID-19, I was still enjoying it to the end. Although definitely challenging at times, I would highly recommend Samsung UK to anyone looking for an unforgettable placement year.

Even though I was given independent projects from the start, I felt that I was given more responsibility throughout the year and was relied on more. This was really rewarding when bigger or more intense projects went well! I felt valued as I think that my manager and the team made me feel as if I had contributed useful work, and I always felt really welcome in the wider team.

My manager was great because it was made clear why I was given certain tasks or what he wanted me to gain from projects. Both of my supervisors were incredibly supportive and took time to guide me through anything I needed. Throughout the year we had regular catch-ups and this increased during lockdown which was super useful.

Due to the nature of the work, the majority of my work consisted of longer term projects so only a few of my tasks needed to be turned around daily. It was sometimes intimidating being given projects that felt much larger due to the long time frame, but this meant I was never without work.

From day one, I was given a policy to work on which had been introduced that year and it was my own project throughout the whole year to make my own. Often I would complete a project from start to finish independently, which was great! In compliance, I was trusted to make judgement calls on vendors daily. I was given much more than I expected, but knew I could always seek help if I needed it.

I think the skills I gained will help me massively after uni. I will feel much more comfortable dealing with various professional situations, having been exposed to so many. I have experienced different aspects of sustainability and definitely have a clearer picture of the career I would like to pursue. In terms of transferable skills for uni, I have improved my time management skills massively and think I know how to deal with stress better.

When we were in the office, there was always something going on! I really enjoyed being in the office every day. The vibe was very friendly. When we were working from home, our team had really regular calls to keep the contact going, and we also had weekly wider team calls which were fun on a Friday.

The whole placement and graduate scheme was really well set up. We had a week of training all together which was great for both learning about the company and getting to know each other. Our coordinators were great and were so supportive both in the beginning and throughout the year. We had regular meetings and training to support our development from student to professional.

As mentioned above, we had regular training sessions on a variety of skills and personal development. One I found really useful was a more in-depth session where we learnt our individual skills/characteristics and how to utilise these best, and how to work on the personality traits which might be holding us back. We also had lots of other training opportunities, volunteering opportunities and other resources that we could access at any time.

If there was ever space for me, I would love to explore future opportunities with Samsung. I know placements who have returned to Samsung for grad scheme - some in the same roles and some looking for new experience. I think the career development available seems exciting.

In my batch of placements/grads, there were around 40 of us, so there were loads of us for nights out/drinks/social events. This was great and allowed everyone to find their people, and I have made some really great friends from this year. We also did some dinners and nights out in my team which were really fun! And of course the Christmas Party.

I lived in London, which was amazing for the atmosphere, for weekends, nights out, seeing friends but was expensive! London rent plus commuting was more than I expected but I would definitely not have changed it as I loved where I lived and would chose it again.

Chertsey/weybridge is quite quiet for the nightlife, it does have some pubs, but is also only 20 mins from Clapham/Waterloo so anyone who didn't live in London would just hop on the train which was so easy and great for our nights out.

I know there were sports teams, such as football. Other things you could do included volunteering, or Samsung UK also did a trip to Mont Blanc which anyone could get involved in.