Technical Marketing Engineer Intern Review

I really enjoyed my placement with Intel for the following reasons: - You are treated the same as employees that have been there for years, for example you get the same benefits and get to join in on all the site events and activities - You are given responsibility and without you being there work couldn’t get done - There are many opportunities to get involved in projects outside of your role - Intel take on around 50 interns and also graduates in the Swindon site so there are many young people to live and socialise with - You are recognised for your hard work

At Intel everyone is so appreciative of anything you do for them. They have a number of different schemes where you can thank people, this is widely used throughout the company. One of these is called an MBA (Merci Beacoup Award) where someone can take this and get chocolate/vouchers or another is where you can give recognition to someone, this goes onto an Intel debit card and can be spent anywhere. Intel also try to have team building days and volunteer days where you and your colleagues can get to know each other outside of work.

As an intern your first month is spent with the previous year’s intern, this means that you can ask them any questions you have and you are slowly brought into the world of work. Once your intern leaves you are given a mentor who is usually a younger person in the company that you can go to if you don’t feel like you want to go to your manager with the situation. However my manager was extremely supportive throughout the year. You are encouraged to have regular 1 to 1 meeting with them to discuss how you are doing and anything else that is related to your role.

For me personally everyday was completely different, sometimes I would have a really quiet day or sometimes it would be really busy and I’d have to stay late a few hours. Intel let you manage your own time, you aren’t watched you just need to get your job done. If you have to stay late one evening then you can leave early the next day or if you have to work a weekend because of an event then you get to add these days onto your holiday. If you are bored and have nothing to do you can always go to your manager and ask for more work or to anyone else in the company and ask if you can get involved in a project they are doing – this is always encouraged.

I was given a reasonable amount of responsibility. My role revolved around a lot of events so the smaller events my manager was happy for me to get on with on my own and didn’t really check up on me as he expected me to go to him if I had any issues. I went to events in Madrid and Dublin as well as various throughout England on my own to give technical support. The large events that my whole team were involved with I helped out with but wasn’t the sole organiser. The level of responsibility given to you depends on how your manager feels you are getting on.

During my 13 month placement with at Intel I have gained a better understanding of how large multinational companies work. I jumped at opportunities to get involved in extra projects and as a result developed a network of contacts for the future. As we have many events and projects going on at once I have definitely learned how to manage my time, how to prioritize work and also how to delegate tasks during busy periods.

I worked in a lab area so it was a bit different from being in the office. But the atmosphere in all of Intel is pretty relaxed, you can generally wear what you want they aren’t very strict. Everyone is friendly and usually chatting. The intern community in the Swindon office is very big which means there is always something going on at the weekends and someone to chat to at lunch.

The placement was very well organised as the intern scheme has been going on many years at Intel. Your first month is filled with A LOT of training about the business, how you should act and your job role. In the middle of your placement it’s pretty much what you make of it, i.e. what projects you get involved in and what responsibilities you take on as you don’t have to do this. Then at the end of your placement you have a review on how you have got on throughout the year and handover to your new intern.

When you first join Intel you have a long list of training to complete, some which are compulsory and you must complete before you can carry out your job role. There are many internal websites that you can go to to get training on a long list of things for every department. There is an Intel 360 event in America where full time employees go to but interns aren’t allowed so they have the training online. Throughout the year people will come on site and you can sign up to classes on for example on presenting skills or negotiating.

It is different for different areas of the business as some groups take a certain amount of graduates on each year however this is not the case with my department. In engineering roles they only take on graduates/experienced hires if they have a job opening. I was told that interns that have made a good impression throughout their placement may get contacted if a role comes up.

The social scene in the Swindon site is excellent. We have many committees that do various activities throughout the year such as a sport, social, volunteering, charity and publishing committee. There is a student intern mailing group where everyone is updated on the recent activities and everyone has an opportunity to get involved to get to know each other. From weekend's away to mixed netball competitions, it has been a lot of fun!

The cost of living is quite cheap compared to other parts of the UK, we were paying £310 for a double ensuite room not including bills – this was a 4 bed house in the centre of town and within walking distance to work. Socialising prices are pretty standard, not super cheap but not expensive either.

The nightlife is quite tragic… There are a few small clubs in the area but mainly bars. As there are a lot of us interns it made it fun because we pretty much filled a place anyway. We also held events like pub crawls to make the small town more fun. Bristol isn’t far away and not a lot in taxis when there are a few of you going. We did this a few times and it is definitely worth is especially when you get bored of Swindon. I don’t go to uni in England but I spent a lot of time visiting my house mate's friends and going out at their uni nights out which was a lot of fun too.

There are always events going on at Intel with many opportunities to get involved whether it’s an email sent around asking for volunteers or whether you have approached someone and asked to get an insight into their job and what they do. I have always been encouraged by my manager to talk to people and find out what they do and if necessary complete a week long work experience with them.