Human resource intern Review

I enjoyed my placement with GE however it could be extremely tough on times and I felt that the support was not there very often. It was however a very good experience that linked well with the degree I was studying therefore if I had the chance to do it again then I would.

I definitely went above and beyond what I was expected to do as an intern however nobody seemed interested in what I was doing and as I result I felt undervalued a lot of the time. I did build a good relationship with the team but it did take around 6 months to do so.

I have given 5 stars as half of the time I had a manager that was very supportive however half way through my placement my manager left and there was not much time to get to know my new manager as she was often quite busy therefore our relationship wasn't very good. However I'm sure if we had more time then we would have built a better relationship and as a result I would have good more guidance and support.

I scored a 10/10 however I wouldn't say that it was the 'perfect balance' of being busy as we were understaffed therefore we were actually extremely busy and no matter how long I stayed in work there was no way to finish everything I had to do. It did get a bit out of control however I would much rather be too busy and getting involved in more than sitting around doing nothing. So despite it being crazy a lot of the time it helped me gain so many transferable skills. I have since been made aware that things are starting to calm down a bit so it should no longer be an issue.

At the start I was given quite a lot of responsibility as an intern. I was running a number of projects completely alone however as time went on we became understaffed and I took on even more responsibility. I was always happy to take on more responsibility as I wanted to get involved in as many things as possible. Despite being extremely busy because of this it was a good things as I ended up doing a lot of things I wouldn't have normally been asked to do.

My placement was extremely well suited to my degree and for roles that I would want to go into in the future. I have gained a huge number of transferable skills and I have since looked at a number of jobs in my field and I meet all of the criteria almost all of the time. This has given me a huge confidence boost in my ability to get a job after graduating. Since returning to university I have also noticed that I am performing better academically than my peers and performing better presentations as well.

At the start of my placement the atmosphere in the office was great. Everybody got along and was very friendly however when people started leaving and we were extremely busy the atmosphere changed as people were stressed and had no time to communicate with each other. They have since got more staff in so I believe the atmosphere problem has been resolved.

The placement had been ongoing for years so it was clear what my responsibilities were. The handover process was very good at clarifying this and a folder had been put together to explain each role clearly and when the job should be completed by so I knew exactly what I had to do and by when.

The prospects of future employment were poor as there is only one graduate role on offer in the office every 3 years so you have to be lucky and start your internship when the graduate is finishing theirs. Even if you do get the graduate role, after 3 years there is a low chance that you will get a permenamt job and you have to hope again that there is an availability in the office which is unlikely.

There was a good social scene amongst interns as there was so many of us however in my office I was the only intern and I didn't live with any interns either so I didn't have the chance to socialise with them very often. However the other interns that lived together did a lot outside of work which I would sometimes get involved in.

The cost of living was quite good as there are a lot of student housing around which was quite affordable (around £260) a month. However if you wanted to live in the city centre or other areas it would be around £350 a month which is still quite affordable compared to the London area. Activities such as the cinema, shopping and going out for food is also very affordable.

In the city centre is a wide range of nightlife including prysm, glam and tiger tiger. There are a number of other clubs and bars in the area which are very affordable and popular, especially when the rugby is on! The city centre however is a 20 minute drive from the site therefore if you lived in the area then the nightlife would be exclusive to a few local pubs.

The company held many activities were you could go cycling, mountain climbing and offices would hold 5 a side football games. These were also communicated well to everyone on site via emails and through the monthly newsletter. Around Christmas they also offer free pantomime and ice skating tickets.