Engineering Summer Intern Review

My colleagues were welcoming, lovely, and incredibly helpful. I was able to learn a lot in the short amount of time about my sector considering I had only a basic knowledge when starting off. The topics involved and the tasks given were very interesting and relevant. I would have been slightly happier had I been given more responsibilities or the opportunity to work more on the solo project given towards the end of the internship.

I was made to feel part of the team and the office, however I believe more could have been done.

Aside from my Line Manager, I also had a Placement Manager who was my daily contact point. My Line Manager dealt more with the administration, and I did not have many contact hours with them, however my Placement Manager took it upon himself to essentially teach the theory required to undertake my tasks. He provided a great amount of support when necessary, but also allowed the team and I to work out and solve problems encountered on our own, only pitching in when asked for help or when the work was far beyond our abilities.

There was a mix of busy periods and slow periods. Due to the nature of my work, which involved processing large amounts of data, there were sometimes large periods of time spent waiting, during which I think other tasks/projects should have been given. I also think that, due to many of the weeks spent working as a team of 3 on the same tasks, there was sometimes little to do.

During the team tasks, responsibility was split between 3 people so that we could play to our natural strengths. Whilst this served well for completing the task within the given time, I don't think it gave each of us enough responsibility. The solo project, however, gave me the opportunity to work alone on a single task, which is a completely differently experience, and meant I was solely responsible for the work I produced in the end. I was also given the opportunity to present my completed work to other interns and members of staff.

Having been able to give presentations twice in front of fellow colleagues, I've been able to develop those skills and am much more confident that I had been previously. I've also been able to improve my skills using the coding language Matlab, having had very little experience with it before starting the internship. Most importantly, the internship has provided a great insight into what it's like working in the industry, including working with people of different roles and personalities.

I found that it took the organisation a while to complete security checks for access and the to install the necessary software. But i was constant contact with my Placement Manager, and my Line Manager was always at hand should I have a problem. I think due to how large the company is, it is inevitable that things take time to get sorted out, but I would say it is organised.

The company provided a two day training course to teach us about all the relevant theory necessary. Whilst only the 2 day course was required for me, I know that the training school offers a range of short courses depending on the level of the work you undertake. Considering this was a short term placement, I think my Placement Manager spent a great deal of his own time explaining what needed to be taught with the right level of patience.

The graduate scheme in place within the company gives you the opportunity to gain experience in four different sectors across the company. Having attended the summer intern conference towards the end of the internship, it seems that there are great opportunities available across the company, especially if you're willing to look yourself.

Unfortunately in the sector I was working in, there weren't many people my age. The industrial placement students, summer interns, and grad scheme students put the total to 5. Whilst we did go for after work drinks/dinner on occasion, I think the social aspect is lacking at the site I was working at.

We were given the opportunity to take part in a group project to design make and test a product to race against other companies. Due to the length of the internship, and the fact that it was over summer, there were no opportunities through the company to take part in school mentoring schemes, although this is available to those on longer placements. The island itself does provide a great variety of sports, water based and land based, depending on your interests.