New Product Development Placement Student Review

I really enjoyed working at Dr Oetker. The people were friendly and helpful, the work was fun, challenging and rewarding.

The NPD team were always appreciative of the work I did and treated me as an ordinary colleague. Being a placement student didn't mean I was only good for being sent on tea runs! Many of the staff socialised out of work hours which contributed to the friendly atmosphere.

I was given regular reviews throughout my year at Dr Oetker. Each time I was told where I was doing well and if there were areas I could improve upon. I was always given support to help me achieve my objectives.

I was always kept busy and for me that is ideal. A flexi time system was put in place during the year I worked there, so working over time meant I would be rewarded with time off, this was very appreciated!

There were certain areas were I was given a good deal of responsibility, such as creating samples for customer meetings. The only thing I would say is that I would have found it beneficial to have got involved in some more areas of the NPD process, such as packaging & labelling. Maybe spending some time with the Marketing department would have been beneficial for future job roles as the two areas do tend to overlap.

I would say having completed this placement definitely gave me a huge advantage when interviewing for jobs after finishing my degree course. I already had a years experience in a specific role, this set me apart from people with a degree but no idea of what working in the food industry was actually like. I was able to answer questions much better as I already had a good understanding of terminology etc. I have worked with people since that have come straight out of uni not having done a placement and I must say the difference in how that person settles in and the quality of their work is very obvious.

Working at a company that's main focus is cake mixes and decorations couldn't possibly be anything but fun! I definitely miss the regular tasting sessions. The office is open plan therefore you get to know a variety of different people which definitely helps to boost confidence.

My placement was very structured, much more so than other peoples placements from my course.

I was included in many in house training sessions such as cake decorating and baking ingredients workshops. I also attend an industry show.

To be offered an NPD job I believe would be difficult. I was however offered work with the Quality department, I stayed with them an extra month after my placement finished. There was a prospect of ongoing work throughout my final year at university, unfortunately this didn't pan out but showed they are definitely willing to keep you on if you prove to be a good worker.

Unfortunately the placement students were all in very different departments and didn't get much opportunity to spend a lot of time together.

Leeds is a university town and caters for all budgets. I am from Leeds so was able to live at home throughout my placement so this didn't affect me too much.

Leeds has a very good nightlife and during term time there are lots of student nights.

Yes, a netball team was set up during my placement which was fun. A few of us went to the local bingo hall a couple of times (and actaully had quite a big win!). We also had a great Christmas party.