System Engineer Intern at Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd

I have enjoyed it a lot so far, I am hoping to stay on after 11 months (the placement) to continue working on my project until mid September when I have to go back to university. I hope to come back after my third year at uni.

Initially I found it difficult to adjust to the environment since there is a lot going on. However after a few months I developed a much more efficient working method, understood more about my team and what there roles were; which made me a lot more effective.

I have been given a lot of support from my section manager, anything from discussing my projects to helping get them signed off, or where to look for certain pieces of information. My section manager has also helped me with developing good project documents and methods for example; a schedule which can be protected from editing and then emailed to the project stakeholders to gain consensus.

I think this is affected by how much day to day work you have and how much project work you have. I have mainly been working on projects so the workload can vary substantially.

Most of my projects have been project management roles, or reporting back to my supervisor. Therefore there is a lot of responsibility to get it right first time, but on the other hand they understand that I am on a placement and that because everything is new to me, it may take me longer than most people to find the right answer (the first time).

I have learnt a lot about general business methods, project management, pitching ideas to different areas e.g. management, the end user, suppliers etc... These are all transferrable skills which will help me in the future. I have also learnt Toyota specific skills which have enabled me to work a lot more efficiently.

This depends on who you work with and where, but in my experience there is a good balance between work and banter. Some days when there is a lot to do, everyone knuckles down and gets on with it, other days there is less to do and people have time to chat a bit.

I think the placement scheme at Toyota is very well setup, especially after not being used for several years. Learning and Development are the department in charge of the training courses which I attended whilst I have been at Toyota, and they are continuing to receive feedback from previous Industrial Trainees and Graduates to improve there training program.

Toyota has dedicated a lot of time and resource to my training. There have been several training courses throughout the year, for example presentation skills, how to produce an effective report, etc... and after discussions with one of the general managers they may incorporate more courses into the training program to give trainees an even better start to their career.

I am not sure yet, until after my placement has ended and my projects have been completed.

All of the trainees and the graduates went out regularly and keep in touch often.

Compared to places like Bristol it is a lot cheaper! I have rented a room in a flat this year for £235 / month whereas Bristol is more like £300 / month (exc. bills)

Derby is surprisingly good for a night out, if you head out to Mosh and Scream and some other places..

There are a lot of activities including a company lottery where you could win a new car or some cash prizes. There is also a football sweepstake, and the 'Eco day' which includes a run around the entire plant, all 1.8 miles (cash prize for the winner). There is also PT events for your department.