Software Engineer IP Review

Work was typically varied and divided between different "Projects". Projects were extremely varied, offered insights into what scientists do at the company and required vastly different problems to solve. As a Software Engineer, I saw insights into how biologists perform experiments and analysis on biological matter. How chemists break down and analyse compounds, with my work supporting them in their endeavour. I found the work extremely rewarding and learning experience.

Staff members were extremely approachable and willing to listen to your comments, ideas and concerns. There was never a moment where I felt like 'just a student'. Everyone valued my opinion and the work I contributed. Most of my interactions were spent working with developers in India, who were very nice to work with and were willing to help teach skills I was developing.

My supervisor was extremely attentive and caring. He would provide insights into the business groups I was supporting, offering advice in how to perform tasks and was active in dealing with any issues as they arose. I had weekly one to one meetings with him at least, but was always willing to drop what he can to discuss any issues that I felt required his attention.

This varied extremely, particularly between projects. When projects were running, I was extremely busy. as there were a plethora of tasks to perform. During the transition to new projects, however, there were extremely quiet periods. Some as long as 3 weeks. I used this opportunity to ask other members of staff to get involved or write that end of year placement report for your university.

Responsibility was grew accordingly over time. In the beginning I worked directly alongside other developers and was instructed what tasks to carry out by when. Eventually, I became more and more independent and had to organise meetings, create timelines, estimate workloads and create necessary documentation. The increase in responsibility scaled up very nicely.

I have developed skills and knowledge for life, which I will take on with me for the rest of my career. I received ample training in which enabled me to complete my job, and this training has the ability to be used throughout my studies in University. Personally I was going into the placement with a plan in which I wanted to improve certain skills at a minimum - but what I have actually gained from the experience far outweighs anything I had anticipated. All of the skills and practical knowledge will have a huge affect going into my final year of University - over and above that it will be applied throughout the duration of my career.

There was a considerable age gap between me and the rest of my office, meaning it was mostly quiet but everyone was still friendly and willing to stop and chat. There was a considerable age gap between myself and the permanent staff but I never felt that created any issues. I was among 5 other students, so there was a fantastic balance of communication "styles".

I would say the placement was well organised. There was a welcome initiation at the start, which made settling in fantastic and offered a chance to meet everyone. Students are looked after well. My only complaint were organising information with SRG. Who were often slow to respond to information requests, often replying too late for the information to matter.

The company was extremely tentative to my development and training needs. Often, I would have influence on what I would work on such as developing websites for the ASP experience or implementing customer facing responsibilities for requirements gathering and analysis skills. Whilst not always possible, they certainly did their best to adapt for my development needs.

For an I.T Software Engineer, future employment aspects here are poor. Most of the development work is done offshore in India, with only 1 permanent staff on-site developer. As a pharmaceutical company, they are primarily recruiting scientists followed by business analysts. That said, there is a programme to register your interest, should the appropriate role arise.

Social scene was great, particularly since I was placed close to London. We did weekly restaurant outings, pub nights and house parties for those interested. With near 100 students on my site, the social scene was certainly great.

Overall it was very cheap and affordable to live in Stevenage, as it is not a major city. It was easy to balance living and socialising costs because of the wage was very competitive with other placements and the cost of living was minimal. Activities and social events in the area were reasonably priced as the Stevenage is a small town, with London a 20 minute train ride away to meet any (more expensive) needs.

Stevenage was a small, quiet town. It has a bowling alley and 2 dance clubs. There are many pubs. For nightlife, people should be looking towards London for a good time. As a nerd, Stevenage was perfect for my quiet life.

Stevenage has a few cycling, running and swimming clubs to get involved with. Nothing particularly stands out but this was not something I actively pursued.