Buyer Review

I have definietly enjoyed my placement here at Vauxhall, a combination of the great people and meaningful work has made my time here fly!

I found that i have always been valued by my colleagues when completing work either for them or individual work to help the team. However, i have felt like in some circumstances i was given the 'bottom of the barrel' jobs that nobody wanted. This however, did not include anything like photocopying, making tea ect...it was always work for the benefit of the department.

Management has always been there to support me through my 12 months here, i found that the employees here are all very knowledgable and quick/happy to help. There was a mentor programmes set up for us but i have not found this helpful as the mentor was outside of my department so we had no work in common and found it hard to discuss technical issues...

My daily tasks vary hugely, Some days i can be busy 8-430 and other days i can only have a few emails to deal with. I found that the amount of work i have to do depends hugely on whether GM Europepersonell are in the office. eg. German bank holidays....

During my placement i think the build up to having my own responsibility has been timed perfectly. At the beginning i was assiting with most projects and learning the processes effectively, then when i was ready i was given my own project that i led from start to finish. I was not told what to do, rather advised where to get help or advice.

My placement role does not directly influence my degree, however, i would not change the role i chose as the skills and experience i have gained have been invaluble. Having a years experience in a corporate environement as big as GM is rare and this will definitely help em in the future. In addition to experience of office life, i was also given training in a wide array of areas from excel, presentation training and data spill training. (e-learing was availible throughout the year).

Everyone in the office was so friendly and always liked to have a laugh.

The placement was well oragnised, we were given enough introductory talks and meetings to help us settle in as well as a good social handover. There were regualr reviews through the year with management and HR too.

None specifically for me, i had a role to do and i accessed around my performance in that role. There was no issues with extra training or development needed.

Not many undergraduates return to work for Vauxhall the next year, my department seems to be downsizing as well.

The social scene was well organised at the beginning of placement and people kept up this throughtout the year with regular nights our and other social events. Football, Go-Karting ect

£350 pppm rent for a 4 bedroom house in a 'nicer' area of Luton. Socialising is comparable to most other uni towns. Cheap flights from Luton airport...!

Luton isnt nice at night. There is a yates and a couple of pubs, go elsewhere for a better night!

I have been getting involved in a lot of out of work activities such as the London 2 Brighton bike ride and Goodwood festival of Speed. There are also hikes and football tournatments ect...