Structural Engineering Intern Review

I really enjoyed learning the new content that I can now apply to my degree course. Seeing civil engineering in action renewed my enthusiasm for the subject and I felt useful in terms of the work I was doing. I felt like I fit into the company and always received help when needed which was a relief as sometimes the topics had not been covered in my degree yet.

I did feel values by my colleagues to an extent as I was competent enough to perform the tasks set. Sometimes I felt like I was being a bit slow with some tasks as I wasn't familiar with the topic as much as I would have liked to have been, and was afraid of not being helpful but I felt like I fit in well given the amount of experience I had in this discipline.

I was given plenty of support by my management and supervisors with regular meetings to go over my work so I felt like I was improving and becoming quicker at getting the tasks done. Because of this I could have more guidance without taking up too much of their time so I would always have something to do.

Most of the time I would have something constructive to do to benefit the company which was good, but sometimes I would come to a standstill whilst waiting for help/a meeting so I would find something else productive to do in the meantime e.g. write my report about the internship and find resources to read to help my understanding of the company, structural engineering, and my degree.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility but naturally with work as important as I was doing, it had to be checked by someone who was chartered incase I had made any errors. I was also given other non-mathematical tasks such as speaking to work experience school students and giving them activities to do and explaining how things work so I feel as a representative of the company, I had a lot of responsibility there.

The mathematical skills, especially in terms of the Eurocodes, will really help with my degree as familiarity is key. I also have the confidence to go back to Arup and work for them as I have the basic skills and familiarity with the work being done which is half the battle as they do so much. In terms of teamwork, it was nice to be part of a team who was so keen about the work and not just doing it because they had to.

There was a good atmosphere in the office as everyone got along and respected each other. People of a similar age also had a good social life and this was reflected in their teamwork capabilities so things weren't too serious or intimidating. People in the office were generally happy and pleasant to work with as Arup is a good company to work for.

I thought that the placement was well set up as I had important tasks to do within a sensible time scale and also had the opportunity to be involved in other things whilst I was there without being stressed about deadlines or being to slow with the work. It was nice to be there with other interns as well; 6 weeks is a long enough time to decide whether you like the company or not and have sufficient work to do without being a hindrance.

There is a lot of personal training and development schemes at Arup which is promising as they firmly believe in developing skills within the company so that it can benefit. I had a lot of opportunities and permanent employees would have more time to be able to get involved with them but what I did get involved with was very good and interesting and made me feel like a respected employee.

I have a job with Arup when I graduate which is fantastic because now I am really looking forward to going back and working for them. They are very keen on graduates at the moment, especially from civil engineering backgrounds which means that there are lots of opportunities within the company.

There was a good social scene amongst colleagues, especially the younger ones as they all joined the company at the same time. They were very inclusive and welcoming and had regular events where they met up outside of work, to do sports and have drinks etc. so that would be something to look forward to.

The cost of living in Newcastle is very decent which means it is an attractive area to live in even though I am relatively local to the area. Most things are quite cheap which means the financial element of living there is not a concern and it allows me to try new things outside of university and work without being concerned, especially since the pay is so good.

Newcastle is renowned for the nightlife but I can't say that I will be taking part in it much because it's just not my cup of tea. However for people who like that sort of thing it has a great atmosphere and is very inclusive, especially with the student atmosphere from the local university.

Yes there were opportunities at the local sports centre such as Zumba and swimming which I took part in; they were quite cheap too which means I could make it a regular thing each week. There is always something going on in Newcastle so that is something to look forward to. There is a big student atmosphere so there is always something going on.