Year Out Placement Student Review

Over the 12 month Placement period I learnt vast amounts, much more so having worked on a construction site and in an office environment. It is a very valuable experience to work in industry for a year and is something I would highly recommend to Undergraduates.

I felt very much part of a team during my time on site working as part of the management team, I got along well with my colleagues and felt I contributed well, especially towards the end of the project when I gained more experience. When working in the office however it was a very different story.

High levels of staff turnover resulted in a rather disjointed management structure for myself and other colleagues. I received a decent amount of support and guidance from my Project Manager on site but once he left I received a great deal less.

Overall I was rather busy, site hours were longer than expected especially given the commute, but the time flew by.

On site I had a great deal of responsibility as I was working as a part of a small management team. I worked closely with the subcontractors and the Project Manager. When my site came to an end I felt I did not receive the same level of responsibility for the rest of the placement.

Very much so. Over the 12 months I learnt more than the first 2 years at University and the knowledge and training I received from my placement is something that I can take with me for the near future of my working life.

Staff morale was fairly low, this was apparent from the low amount of people that would turn up to the office on a daily basis.

Not as well as I would have liked. As mentioned, the disjointed management structure left me without a mentor or person to contact regularly with any problems / targets or to keep check on me.

I was sent on numerous training days and courses of which I was very grateful for, and I have received some very valuable knowledge and qualifications from them. This was mainly down to the SHEQ manager who visited me on my first week on site and signed me up to various courses.

Morgan Sindall are a very reputable company in the UK construction industry and would therefore be a very promising career path to take, as long as I successfully complete my degree to a high standard. The salary is very competitive.

Unfortunately the social scene in my experience with the company was non-existent, there were no organised social events to mix with other colleagues or students in the office or other offices, apart from the staff induction day that happened once a year for new recruits. This was especially disappointing given the social events my fellow placement friends from University were experiencing who were in different branches of Morgan Sindall.

I lived back at home with my family and had little costs in terms of living, I also received a car allowance scheme and petrol allowance from MS when travelling to and from site which was a nice bonus.

Nightlife was as good as expected as I spent the 12 month placement living back at home where I had my friends and family around me. Living close to London rarely disappoints with regards to nightlife.

Unfortunately there were no opportunities to my knowledge for outside work activities, this was especially disappointing as it would have been good to mix with other colleagues outside work and as a keen footballer I would have enjoyed something football or sport related.