Materials Intern Review

I greatly enjoyed my placement and during the 10 weeks I was given real projects to work on which made it even more exciting! The work was very demanding but the challenge proved to be enjoyable. While the work was exciting the social aspect within the office also made the placement very enjoyable.

My colleagues made me feel very valued during my placement by not only giving me real projects to work on but also listening to the work that I done and taking the research forward. I was taken seriously with my comments and put through any relevant training sessions that I asked to do.

While my supervisors monitored the work I was doing I was left to work through my projects by myself. When I had issues they were always there to answer while trying to make me figure out the answers myself. It was up to me to organise regular meetings to update my supervisors to ensure that the work was done as they desired.

Every day was different with some days requiring earlier starts with a late finish with others that were less demanding. The end goals were set by my supervisors but the route to the end goals was set by myself allowing for some flexibility in the amount of work for each day while ensuring that the project goals were met.

A lot of responsibility was given to me both in the two main projects I was asked to do as well as being given side projects that were production critical.

The area I was working in was completely different to what I have studied at university leading to many new skills being learnt over the course of the placement. These skills will all come into use for both my final year at University (especially in one of the projects I am working on) and when I graduate.

The office was mixed depending on which area you were in. Quite often there was cakes and sweets in the office and everybody got on with each other pretty well. There was some “rivalry” between the different sections of the department in the office but it was all done for humour.

The placement was very well organised from before starting the placement. The IT was quick to be set up and relevant training sessions were organised quickly. Prior information had been provided to me to do research before starting the placement.

At the beginning of the placement I had an initial Personal Development Review where tasks where set for me to meet over the 10 weeks. At the mid-point this was reviewed to check progress and then again at the end to summarise my performance throughout the placement with suggestions for future development. As for training everything was provided as and when it was required.

Employment within Rolls-Royce would be a fantastic opportunity and is something I have applied for. The variation of different roles and business functions is appealing for finding the ideal job with excellent prospects for working through the ranks to develop as a professional.

All the students were housed in the same halls of residence allowing for excellent social relations from the beginning. The first weekend we all met up and created a facebook page to all keep in touch. During the first week the apprentice’s set up a social event for everyone to get to know each other at an official social event. There were many other social events organised throughout the summer. Overall it was very good socially, although I myself was away most weekends.

Cost of living was more expensive than I had anticipated. It was not overly expensive but for the location I felt that it was all a bit overpriced. Most of the professionals at Rolls-Royce do not live in Derby due to its appeal and the local area is much nicer than the city itself.

The nightlife was pretty busy on weekends, although I didn’t make the most of this as I spent most weekends away doing other things. The nights out that I did go on were very enjoyable with a good selection of pubs from modern cocktail bars to real ale pubs. Every night was a good night and those that did go out always mentioned how good the night had been.

There was lots going on outside of work between events with the company, those in my office, the other interns as well as activities I found to do myself. I played 5-a-side with other people from the company which was really great to see those from completely different areas and departments. I also enjoyed other events that were nearby, such as Silverstone Classic and the Peak Distict.