Vehicle Architecture Engineer Review

There have been lots of up and downs throughout the year which will be covered in other parts of the review but overall i'm leaving next week with a big smile on my face and with some great prospects for the future.

By the end of my placement i'm valued pretty much identically to that as any other engineer in the team and given work projects that reflect that. The other engineers that i worked with were always really appreciative of any work i did for them and were always offering to help me and show me things which made me feel really welcome within the team.

I had a half hour meeting every week where we could discuss all the work that i was up to and how i was progressing etc. I could ask for help and i'd get pointed in the right direction and advice. Initially at the beginning of my placement i would have liked a bit more support with tasks where i couldn't wait until our weekly meeting, i could of course always ask for help but often he was very busy and it could be challenging fighting for my managers time.

This varied massively over the course of the placement, initially for the first 3-4 months i had such little work that i was often very bored. However this is due to the job itself which requires a base level of knowledge across all vehicle systems and therefore i had to develop core knowledge before i could really do any tasks. Other departments focussing on simulations etc you can always do tutorials to keep yourself busy but my department unfortunately wasn't like that. However as the year went on and my knowledge grew i was given a much greater deal of work and i enjoyed myself much more.

This response is pretty much identical to the previous one. At the beginning of the placement when i didn't have much work the tasks i were given were of little importance and felt like they were just to pass time. However towards the end i was running whole projects and would be setting up loads of meetings and reviews with managers from all across the business. I now feel like a real professional engineer at the end of my placement.

University focusses on a very mathematical and theoretical side of engineering and the jobs in real world industry can vary massively. As i said before i worked on high level early stage concepts and so technical detail was less focussed on, so i wasn't exactly knocking out differential equations. However the knowledge i did gain was on how a vehicle ACTUALLY works in the real world and problems that are faced in industry. I also learnt a lot about business cases and how to make a program profitable. Obviously a number of soft skills was also developed such as presenting skills and teamworking

This was one of best things about working at JLR. Very very relaxed, tonnes of open space and free desks so you can choose to change up where you work and what kind of desk or screens you use. There are also loads of breakout areas so you can go and sit in a booth to hold an informal meeting etc. In terms of peoples attitudes its just as good, people are always chatting away whilst working, incredibly social work place. You can choose to start more or less when you want from 6:45ish - 9ish so you can tailor your hours to your own life. There are costa and starbucks shops on site so you can pop down to take a coffee break or bring one back up to your desk where you're allowed to eat/drink etc. Overall a really fun work space making JLR a joy to work at.

Initially once the offer came through, we all were invited to a facebook group where were sent regular updates and information from the recruitment/HR team and this was really helpful and helped to ease nerves a bit. On our first day we had a lot of introduction talks and presentations introducing us to the business and that at the end of the day we were introduced to our managers for half an hour and told where to meet them the next day. This was all really good and made me very excited for the year ahead. However from here you were just left with your manager, and that was that. There was no real further follow ups or undergraduate catch up events or structured training etc. So tbh after the first day your experience is completely based on how much effort your manager wants to put into you. Luckily mine was good, but i've heard a lot of horror stories from other undergrads who's managers seemed a bit surprised to be receiving an undergrad and didn't really know what to do with them for a long time.

There is an online training internal website where you can book yourself onto training courses and even do online training courses. All training had to be approved by our managers and i did do a few soft skills courses throughout the year. The standard of training at these was really really high. I did a dignity and respect course where hired actors would come in and help put you into challenging office scenarios with fake colleagues. In terms of technical training i did very little and i didn't really know what to choose for my job role, my manager didn't really suggest for me to do anything or help out in getting me onto courses which was a bit of shame.

Fantastic. I've been offered a provisional job once i complete my degree on a starting salary well above the national average on a grad scheme which has received really good reviews for training and development. I'm really happy to be returning and continuing my career.

I didn't have contact with any of the undergrads because we were all split up after our first day. My department was all full of younger people and so i quicker joined a group of lads who played football every week and organised inter-departmental 11 a-side games which was real good fun. We also had regular football nights out, bbqs etc. I felt really well included and i've made genuine friends rather than just "work mates".

I'm from London, so everything feels kind of cheap compared to that. I guess Leamington is pretty pricey in terms of rent and socialising compared to most places. Around £4 a pint for anything other than a spoons.

Leamington has plenty of nice pubs, bars and restaurants. For a small town its actually quite impressive. However once it gets passed midnight/1am you're options quickly diminish and you're left with one dodgy club that's stupidly priced. Overall it's pretty good for the most part, however if you want to go proper clubbing you're best of getting a bnb in Birmingham (30mins train) or London (1hr train) it'll cost you a bit more but you'll have a much better night.

As mentioned before i took part in football and football social nights. There were also departmental social events such as a go karting championship and other such things. You can easily set up events and invite people using the calender system so you can make the opportunities if you don't think there are enough already.