SAS Summer Placement Review

The placement at SAS for this summer was highly enjoyable and highly recommended for someone in the I.T field willing to gain valuable insight and experience in a real life working industry. From day one SAS had made our placement this year not only challenging but also very exciting. This year I believe we were given real business problems and had to find an array of solutions using our experience and training that was given to us in the first two weeks. I can honestly say my opinion of SAS changed within the first week as I saw how well they treated their employees even us six interns. From getting invited to SAS in the park (SAS fun eventful midyear meeting) to having dinners after work with the management team who looked after us six. I believe the SAS summer placement would be a credit to anyone who is interested and highly rewarding.

I believe I can speak for the six interns and say that we all felt highly valued especially this year. The first two weeks we were given training that we would carry with us during our projects that were given for the last four weeks. We were given our individual projects that required finding solutions to real life business problems for a certain department. My project was based in presales where I had to create a customer demo to display the ‘wow’ features of Visual Analytics. It just goes to show how valued our work within the six week period was as my demo which I created had been used to a real SAS customer after I had left which I have just been informed that the client is highly interested in the Visual Analytics package.

During the internship the guidance and support given to us was just phenomenal. From day one SAS had been very accommodating and built a support network for us six interns so that regardless the issue we always had someone to speak to. Alongside our project managers we were given support by all having the same point of contact that was responsible for us and his level of understanding and support was second to none. Also we were all under the care of the HR department where a couple of staff looked out for wellbeing. A meeting every Friday was scheduled with our point of contact just to catch-up on how the placement was going and to see if we had some issues or concerns. I believe that after having completed my placement I can say SAS has built a system on support or ‘open door policy’ regardless of the department or person you was in, there would always be someone willing to help even the Managing Director to some extent.

Although I completed my summer placement after my degree I believe if I had completed this placement during my studies a lot of the skills and information we received would most definitely assisted me in my degree. I know that the other students returning to education all will use their SAS skills to have a better outcome in their degrees. The experience alone would give a person a better understanding of the business world and an understanding of group dynamics and teamwork that would defiantly assist anyone returning to education. The experience alone would allow for people to think outside the box as they would have a better understanding of a working practice rather than just a methodology. In addition one of the other interns I believe had based her dissertation on what she was doing in her individual project.

The internship was well structured and It was obvious that a lot of time and planning went in what SAS wanted us to gain from the internship but also accommodating what we wanted to gain from it also. We were given a breakdown in our first day outlining what we was supposed to be doing in the placement and who we needed to contact if required. The first two weeks of the six we were given training in creating business intelligence and enterprise guild as well as softer skills training of presentation skills etc. alongside the schedule, SAS encouraged us to get involved and take leadership of our own schedule as that what an industry professional does.

The general atmosphere during the internship was of a fun but also a serious one. Serious to the extent that an understanding that we was there to commit 100% to our projects and fun due to the relaxed working environment SAS had been known for. As well as been encouraged to get involved in the array of activities such as football on site, SAS offered a relaxing and calm atmosphere where everyone is willing to help when asked, colleagues would genuinely be interested in what you were saying and from my own experience everyone was helping each other to succeed not individually but as a team as everyone is treated equally.

SAS invested heavily in us six interns from doing two training courses of Creating Business Intelligence and Enterprise Guide: Querying and reporting, to honing in to brush up on our soft skills. SAS really put an emphasis on us gaining a lot from the experience from time we had there. I know from the Summer Placement SAS is working towards concrete Graduate Programme where they can take the success of the placement and put it into a Graduate Programme to benefit young professionals and it is of my understand that we placement students would be considered for future opportunities when positions become available. SAS really focused individual personal development through the help of our project managers continually enhance our skills to become better business men/women of the future.

Having the experience of working in a key player in industry is without double highly valuable and has given me an advantage over other graduates. Having working for only six weeks at SAS has shown me what it would be like to have a full time role at SAS. Having the summer placement under my belt has given me great confidence to be left feeling I wanted a position at SAS and I am confident in my ability now to say I can do it.

As mentioned before the summer internship was extremely helpful in understanding the company culture. I believe that being treated equally from the moment we walked through main reception in day one helped or exposed us to its company’s culture. Putting us on an equal scale to the other employees is a testimony of SAS integrity and willingness to learn from us interns not just the other way around.

There were enormous opportunities for networking and meeting other employees. Alongside meeting new people just from your departments, SAS encouraged networking opportunities from having days such as SAS in the park where employees are encouraged to network from all over SAS. Also due to SAS site in Marlow is built on acres of land there a number of different clubs that are set up to encourage people not just to have a working relationships but also to form social relationships with regards to a particular hobby or interest you they may have. The opportunities to network are endless.

As mentioned before the opportunities are endless. SAS encourages networking in a big way and I would say it is because of these new relationships forming will always make SAS business prosper.

There is a lot of opportunity which SAS as a business encourages. There are always posters, emails etc. that get past to everyone in the company regardless of who you are to get involved in activities, clubs and societies.

100% without doubt.