Undergraduate Engineer Review

I really enjoyed my placement at JLR. I was based in PCPA, which is the department responsible for auditing completed cars to ensure they reach an acceptable standard to be sent to the customer. As part of this role, I learnt to audit cars independently, which involved checking all cosmetic and functional aspect of the car, as well as a water test and a drive test.

Everyone in my department was really friendly and helpful to me. I spent time shadowing many members of the team, so got to know some of them really well and they will remain good friends to me even if I don't return to the PCPA department.

My manager and supervisor were both really helpful and supportive. Although at times it would be really busy so they wouldn't have time to personally help me, they ensured there was always someone who could help me if I needed it.

As my placement went on and I was given more responsibility, I became more and more busy. I also got involved in some projects outside of my department (such as the Graduate Share Fair and the Green Travel Scheme), which required me to have days out at other sites and use some of my time to complete these tasks. My manager and supervisor were very supportive of this, and make sure I was given a suitable amount of work that took this into account.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility, being a key member of the Green Travel Scheme, as I was responsible for one of the initiatives that we were implementing across the Solihull manufacture site, as well as day to day responsibilities as part of the PCPA team.

The skills and experience I gained from my placement is useful and will definitely help in the future. It gave me a better understanding of the manufacturing process which will be useful both academically and for future employment.

Really positive. There was a lot of humour, even when it got quite busy. It was a really good team and I really enjoyed my time with them.

Fairly well. My manager and supervisor had not been aware of many of the details of my placement before I got there, which I think meant they could not organise my time with them as well. For example, obtaining a work driving permit took much longer than it needed to, which stopped me from being able to work independently as quickly as I otherwise could have.

There was plenty of online resources that I had access to for personal development. I was also supported by many members of the team who helped me to improve my knowledge within the department, which was always really helpful.

I would really like to return to JLR in future, as both an undergraduate intern or a postgraduate. It's a really great company to work for and I can see myself trying to advance within the company. The graduate scheme also seems very appealing, and would be great for gaining a wider experience.

Many of the interns at JLR lived in student accommodation together, so the social life was great. I got to know many of the other interns, and lift shared with a lot of the other people who worked on my site.

It was fairly cheap. Living in London for university, it seemed much cheaper than that, with the student accommodation costing £81 a week for the 12 weeks I was there.

The nightlife was really good. Many of the interns would go to pubs and bars in Coventry together which was a really good way to get to know the other interns.

While living in Coventry I joined the Gym and the local tennis club, both of which I attended regularly.