IT Security Intern Review

Working at GE was extremely enjoyable. The work was challenging, had business impact and came with a lot of responsibility. The support in transitioning from University student to full-time employee was incredible, and other employees could not do enough to help you feel settled and welcomed into the business.

I felt my work had real worth. I wasn't given menial tasks, designed just for the new people, I was working on projects which would affect how the business performed. The team I worked in made me feel like one of them, not just an 'intern' and by the end of my internship it felt like I was leaving my family behind, not just my colleagues.

My Manager was extremely supportive throughout my entire Internship. She had been an Intern and Graduate (ITLP) previously, so understood perfectly the steep learning curve I was facing when I first joined the company. I was always encouraged to seek opportunities outside of my comfort zone to continue learning above and beyond my day-to-day job by both my Manager and Intern Supervisor.

With several projects running simultaneously, I was kept busy, without feeling over-loaded. In juggling several on-going projects I learned to balance and prioritise my work, putting items with more importance, and shorter deadlines, before sometimes the more exciting work. I was encouraged to work to my 37.5hour contract, and if I found myself continuously doing more than that every week, to evaluate how well my time management skills were.

One of my first projects at GE was to run an IT Security risk assessment on my own. This came with great responsibility, as any slip may have resulted in gaps in the security system. I also had the opportunity to work on several high-priority cases for the businesses, and even worked on cross-business (across the several GE subsidiaries) projects, allowing great exposure and even greater learning.

Two of the biggest skills I have gained this past year are organisation and time management. Coming back into my final year I will have several assignments running simultaneously, and then in second semester will be completing my major project. Through GE I learned how best to organise my work to ensure the best outcome, and in myself I am more motivated through being able to use my time more efficiently.

I loved the office I worked in. At first it was a little daunting as a lot of the people in the room had been working for GE for well over 10 years, however I felt welcome immediately. The range of ages, life experiences and job roles led to many an interesting conversation, and I can say I never stopped learning something new (even outside of my job!). After 13 months working in that office, I have kept in contact with many of the people in that office, in the hope I will be able to meet up with most of them again in the near future.

Internships have been running at GE for many years, and I believe this is pretty evident in how they conduct recruitment, and the support throughout your time there. There were opportunities for learning outside of your job role, though Intern & Graduate led committees in Technology, Professional Development and Charity.

I undertook several free training sessions throughout my time at GE. I was encouraged to complete an IT Security Open University course, and attended several conferences on Mobile, Health and IT Security. Through the Professional Development committee we also had the opportunity for CV checking and Interview practice.

I would rate 10 for this however I am waiting to hear back if my application for their graduate scheme (ITLP) has been successful. I am extremely hopeful I will be able to go back and work for GE.

Throughout the year many of the Interns made their own friendship group within GE. I found myself particularly close with the graduates and alumni from the graduate scheme. This led to socialising out of work and regularly playing sport together.

As I was living on the outskirts of London (Amersham - last stop on the Met line), the price of living was quite high. This, coupled with frequent trips into central london to socialise, meant the cost of socialising was quite a lot, especially given we were not in central london working.

Several pubs in the immediate area, however very few clubs. Generally for socialising at night we travelled into Central London to the bars and clubs there.

Through the intern community there were often events such as trips to Thorpe Park and pub quizzes. As an Intern/Graduate group we went to the pub every Friday evening for a catch up. Lots of sports activities to get involved in - netball, football, squash to name a few.