UK Schools & Universities Attractions Coordinator Review

My year with IBM has exceeded my expectations in so many ways - I couldn't have asked for a better manager and team and my role has offered me the right balance of challenge and progression. The intern community at IBM is so large that there is always social stuff going on.

From day one I felt like a trusted IBMer, treated just like any other employee who had been there for several years. I was given full responsibility and independence in my role and felt that my work was high valued by other colleagues.

At IBM you have two main managerial contacts - a task manager and an EPM (Early Professional Manager). My task manager supported me daily in my role and was always there for me to ask if I was unsure of anything. My EPM offered valuable advice during my year at IBM, namely around how to develop personally and professionally and talk me through my options as coming back as a Graduate.

My workload varied daily, but one thing for sure is that I was never bored! There is always work to be done, sometimes you have to put yourself out there and find it, but most of the time my role was very demanding but the flexibility at IBM allowed me to cope well. IBM also run so many events at schools, colleges and University so it's great being able to sign up to attend these to get out the office for a bit.

I was given total responsibility for my role, and I became the expert in the field I was working in. This meant that I was given full responsibility to work with suppliers, internal and external clients and I felt like a valued, trusted employee as I was the sole IBM contact for certain requests.

There is no better way to learn than to experience a full time job and the skills you develop are invaluable. You work with a variety of teams, sometime spread across multiple countries, so these teamwork and communication skills can then be taken to any job in the future. IBM also offered specialised training in areas I wanted to improve in, such as my presentation skills, and I now feel far more confident in presenting which I can take back to University and beyond.

I was pleasantly surprised at the atmosphere and culture of IBM. Everyone was so friendly and willing to help you out and talk to you about what they did. There is a real culture of sharing expertise and the atmosphere was always upbeat, lively and buzzing.

IBM run their Placement scheme year on year so it really does run like clock work! Your EPM (Early Professional Manager) oversees your training and development throughout the year and you also sit under Foundation which covers all IBM Apprentices, Interns and Graduates. Throughout the year there are lots of activities for all of Foundation but for Placement students specifically you have a 3,6,9 and 12 month review so you can monitor your progress, you attend employability skills workshops to improve on areas such as presenting, communication and there are also lots of talks about Graduate opportunities.

Your training and development is very much in your own hands, there are masses of resources and lunch&learns out there in all areas to assist you in whatever personal training and development you would like. However for Placement students specifically, there are dedicated employability workshops to develop presenting skills, communication and team work techniques.

There are a variety of graduate opportunities at IBM and longer term I can see an array of exciting roles I would be interested in, such as working at Wimbledon, with our Watson team.

There are over 300 Placement students and 300 Graduates so the social scene is definitely very active! We had a Placement student Christmas Boat Party on the River Thames. I was also very lucky that I had a fun team who I worked with closely and each week we would go out for team meals, drinks, to the comedy store etc.

Not surprisingly the cost of living and socializing in London is higher than anywhere else in the country, but I always saw that as part of the package and working in London for the year has definitely been the best decision I made at University. IBM offer a London wage-weighting which means you get paid more to work in London to compensate for higher living costs. I have made the most of this year and have not felt restricted by costs.

I was fortunate enough to be placed in our London, Southbank office which is right on the River Thames. The southbank is absolutely buzzing with lots of restaurants and bars within 20 metres of the office! At Christmas the German markets are right on the door step and then of course being so central, you are definitely not short of nightlife in London!

There were more opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work than I first realised. IBM will expense you to go back to your University for career's fairs, workshops etc. and you can also attend schools and colleges to talk to students about working - this is called Giveback at IBM and all Placement students have to get involved in some form of Giveback that is not part of their day-to-day role. I also signed up to be a mentor to sixth formers at a disadvantaged college and found it very rewarding to share my expertise and experiences with them and offer them advice on University, Apprenticeships etc.