Placement Mechanical Engineer Review

Overall, I enjoyed the work placement at Hoare Lea. I'd like to go into the building services industry when I graduate and so the insight into how the industry functioned was valuable.

Very valued. They could see I had gained a lot of knowledge from my course at university and therefore had the confidence to give me larger, more complicated tasks that garnered a higher responsibility.

The associate and partner that I worked under were great at giving me support and making me feel part of the team at Hoare Lea. Their insight and guidance gave me the confidence to further my development.

Once the team had confidence in me, I was regularly busy on a daily basis, working on numerous projects across a wide variety of disciplines.

Like I have said in previous comments, the responsibility was given according to the amount of confidence they had in me. Once I proved my worth, the responsibility gained was more extensive as the weeks wore on.

Due to me wanting to be in the industry when I graduate, the assistance and knowledge has been invaluable. I've learned a great deal in my 3 months at the firm, from dealing with clients, to producing work that is of to a professional standard.

Atmosphere was good, everyone was friendly and as my term came to its end my rapport with the team and the office in general was fantastic.

Overall, not great in the first couple of weeks, which is definitely something they could improve on. I had to desk hop quite a bit around the office, but once I was assigned to a team (within 3 weeks), they were able to organise me much more effectively.

In terms of investment while on the placement, I had a CAD course that I needed to complete to be able to access a licence. Revit tutorials were more 'on-the-job' and it would have been nice if I could have accessed a course or some form of basic training. Having said that, a contract has been offered to me for next year, so in overall investment, I think they excelled in that respect from a personal point of view.

Due to the structure of the company (with it being a partnership), the future prospects are very good as you could work your way up to own part of the firm. You can move around the various offices that they have in the UK, while also having the ability to work out in the international offices (Qatar/UAE) if you so wish.

Unfortunately, there weren't many placement students in the office at the time however it would have been nice for more cohesion between both the ones that were here, and in other offices around the country.

Due to being from Manchester anyway, the cost of living was pretty good as the majority of money I earned from the placement I retained. The city itself is relatively cheap if you compare it to London and the wages match this. Lots to do and get involved with around the area, it's a big enough city to always find new and exciting places to see.

Love the bars and clubs in Manchester, offering anything from classy cocktails to grimy nightclubs. Literally whatever you fancy, you can probably find.

Again being from Manchester anyway, it was relatively easy to involve myself in something if I wanted to. For others, I don't think it would be to difficult. It's a big city, there's a fair amount to explore and get yourself involved in.