Product Affairs Assistant Review

I really enjoyed my time within the Public Relations department at Vauxhall. It gave me lots of opportunities to develop my skills and gain useful contacts for the future.

My team included me in all departmental activities and gave me a lot of encouragement.

My manager is very supportive. I have been on automotive PR courses with MIPAA such as writing and social media. I also have a mentor who I can talk to at any time.

My work goes through high and low periods in terms of work load. During a car launch it is very stressful but rewarding. It depends how many cars are being launched during your placement. There were lots of opportunities for me to get involved in extra work that was not in my core job role.

I have organised and attended vehicle photo shoots completely on my own and have had to brief the photographer and make sure that we capture a full porfolio of images. I have specific tasks that I do regularly but most of my work is determined that day, I therefore have to use my initiative constantly.

I am required to submit a 15 item portfolio at the end of my third year. This placement has given me plenty of examples that I can use. When I return to university I will now have a broader approach to assignments as when planning events, you need to take everything into account. My role has greatly enhanced my team working skills too and I hope that these can be applied when working on group tasks next year.

My department is very events based, so the team are usually quite focused when we're in the office as we have a lot of desk work to get through. My team have been in the industry for on average 10 years each so they have a wealth of experience and are experts in their field, this makes working with them, efficient and they are all really lovely people.

The HR department create a thorough handover period, so that you can learn everything required for your role from your previous undergraduate and get to know the wider organisation quickly. They help you to find accomodation and because there are a lot of undergraduates on placement, you develop friends and a network very quickly.

My department enabled me to attend automotive PR industry events and the HR department gave me additional Presentation and Excel training.

I would like to work for Vauxhall in the future.

Definitely. I lived in a large house with other undergraduates and there were a few company organised events throughout the year but mostly we organised nights out amongst ourselves.

I have spent my entire salary by being here. I think if you're not running a car and tend to stay in most of the time you might be able to save some money..

Luton is terrible for a night out but we organised trips to Watford regularly and I visited my friends in London about twice a month.

I think that there are but work keeps me busy enough and I like to socialise so I haven't taken part in many activities outside the workplace.