Civil Engineering Summer Placement Student Review

Working on various projects I helped to develop technical drawings, visualisations, presentations and designs for civil engineering infrastructure considering the wider context of the project. I was involved with client meetings to further my understanding of the project and the role of the team in achieving client expectations. I was able to work with a wide range of colleagues with varying experience (apprentices and graduates - senior project managers and technical principal engineers)

Industry Software skills: Civil3D, AutoCAD, ArcGIS Pro, SketchUp, Microsoft products Industry Guidance: I gained an awareness of industry standards and guidance and where to look for various guidance. Soft Skills: I developed presentation skills and general communication skills in a professional environment. I think that I gained confidence from working with a range of people and was encouraged to ask for help.

I was given a good level of responsibility. The tasks that I was working on were important to the project and important to meet client expectations and deliverables but I was given a sufficient amount of time to complete these and time was factored in for me to develop my skills and not feel rushed.

I received plenty of support from other employees. All the team were friendly and more than willing to give their time to help and guide me. I was able to have discussions about the work that I was doing but also about wider career development and opportunities both within Mott MacDonald and the civil engineering field.

The company takes diversity and inclusion very seriously and there is a wide range of people from all different walks of life which is refreshing. I felt welcomed from the start and its clear that most people feel valued. There are many internal events and groups/communities that you can be a part of and there are many opportunities direct towards everyone.

I really enjoyed my placement. I think it can be daunting for students in full time education to throw away their final free summers before the world of work hits them full. I enjoyed the work and the atmosphere so much that I extended my placement to 12 weeks. The people were lovely and I was able to go to work everyday doing something that I enjoyed whilst feeling valued by my team.

Yes

Being in a job is not like being in education - You are valued/appreciated for the work that you do. You are not expected to work more hours than you are employed to work (especially as a summer placement student). Don't put added pressure on yourself as you may do in fulltime education -even though you may want to make a good impression it is important to value your own time too.