HR Planning & Steering Student Review

There were many aspects of my work placement I enjoyed. I felt I have gained invaluable experience with BMW, and now have a better understanding of how an organisation works especially in HR. I have put theory into practice from what I have learnt in my modules within university and now have experienced first hand why certain elements are relevant in a real working environment.

I felt a valued member of the team who was quickly accepted into the working routine and treated like any other member of staff. It was also nice that there were other placement students in my office who I could relate to.

I had weekly one on one meetings with my line manager involving a general discussion about work and the commitments I have. It was a private discussion in which we discussed any issues I had during the weeks which I felt was incredibly helpful and supportive.

I felt that I had enough work to consume my day. I never felt I had enough work that there was too much for me to handle. I dealt with a lot of spread sheets and figures during my placement but I didn't feel like the responsibility I had was overwhelming. I think there was the perfect balance of work in terms of there was always something to do and a lot of my projects were on-going as well as having other day to day tasks and meetings.

I was involved in a number of projects which I was personally responsible for. For example, a career pathway project & bus route project, as well as doing reports and quieries for the company concerning job titles, grades etc. If I did not run these reports on time it would affect other people, therefore I did have responsibility for my own projects, and was relied on by others in order to produce certain documents.

I would say through working for BMW HR department I have learnt how to use relevant systems such as SAP, I have learnt time management and organisation in which I have to prioritise the way things are done. I have understood aspects and functions relevant to my course from a first hand perspective.

The general atmosphere in my office was very relaxed. My managers were very young. Hours were based on trust rather than a clock in and out system which was something I liked, as it wasn't strict.

It was a very easy process, I origionally applied for a different positon, but got a call back for a new vacancy and from then we had a face to face interview and within 3 weeks i got a confirmation phonecall. After this the turn-around time for my contracts was very quick and it was very professional and well organised.

I feel like I have been invested in, in terms of attending training days and workshops and learning how to use certain systems.

I think that the grad schemes that BMW offer and other future employment prospects that I have been made aware of within the organisation, for example the GRAD scheme and the MAP GRAD scheme certainly interest me after i graduate.

I work in the Oxford plant there are over 90 students, we have a circulating e-mail list constantly welcoming new students to the plant and also certain events that are put in the calender, e.g dinners, cinema, bowling trips that go on in the evenings. They also do leaving dinners for placement students.

Oxford as an area is quite expensive, but its a student area so certain nights are cheap.

Good. Theres always stuff going on and it's a very student area as there are two universities

Yes, lots of opportunities socially and actively including sports teams, student groups etc.