Engineer Intern Review

I enjoyed the work placement, although, it was not entirely what I was expecting. The work was not difficult, nor was there too much or too little of it, and I enjoyed the flexible nature of the job that allowed you to start and finish when you wished. However, the main criticism I had that the focus in my department was not particularly on the technical side of engineering, and did not allow me to develop new software skills or get a feel for what the technical side of engineering would be like. However, that is not to say the skills that I learnt here weren't valuable, or that others in different departments didn't get that opportunity, I just was personally hoping for a more "typical" engineering experience involving CAD and other software.

I felt very valued here; I was given my own project with an actual need within the business, and the trust from Rolls Royce that I could do it myself. There was no “filler work” to keep me busy, that had no real need to the business, and for this I was very appreciative.

I had my own line manager, who helped me whenever I needed any assistance with the job. Everyone else in my team was also very supportive, and was either more than happy to help, or would point me in the direction of someone who could help me. At no points in the internship did I feel like I was struggling with no assistance.

I felt like I was a very good balance of not too busy, but also not too bored. I had my own project, so I constantly had something I could be working on, rather than waiting to be given a task each day, and then having to find another when it was done. If you work productively, you should be able to complete whatever is required of you within the working week.

I was given a lot of responsibility during my time here. I was handed my own project which was actually relevant and useful to the company, with the assumptions that I would contact and meet with the relevant people, organise my own meetings, etc. There was no "nanny-ing" during my time here, I was handed a project brief, and an end target, and expected to complete the task with some guidance along the way.

Although I didn't develop any engineering or software skills, I did develop a lot of skills that could be transferrable to any job. I learned a lot about general office skills, such as how to complete a project with a open ended scope, and how to organise meetings etc. I'm not entirely sure I learned many skills that will assist me in my degree studies, however, I do now know a lot more about turbo-fan and turbo-jet engines than when I walked through the door.

Personally, I thought it could've been more organised, as during the first few weeks I had to chase things around so that I could actually start doing work. But once I got into the internship, it was relatively well organised. I had a realistic time constrained goal already ready for when I got there.

As a summer intern, I felt that not a massive amount of time was spent training and developing myself. I had to teach myself a few key things about the products and the company, however, as a summer intern I was not expecting a huge amount of investment into training and developing.

The social scene was fantastic! I lived in the student halls while I was here, along with around 50 other interns. There was constantly something going on, whether it be the pub or going to the park in the evenings, or a big Friday night out. In terms of social aspects, the internship here beyond exceeded expectations.

Relatively cheap. Halls were roughly 100 a week, which isn't particularly cheap, but neither was it particularly expensive. Actual costs of going out and socialising were probably the average of most towns in England, some places were cheap and some were expensive, but a summer in Derby definitely didn't break the bank.

I was living in Derby, so it was what you expected of a city in the midlands. There were a few nightclubs, but lots of pubs and bars so there was definitely somewhere to go each night. I wouldn't come to Derby if you're looking for nightlife, but it was fun for a summer.

Yes, there was a netball club for girls, and the AGA (Apprentice & Graduate Organisation) were constantly organising stuff to get people involved. That being said the interns pretty much organised everything ourselves simply because we all got to know each other through halls, but we did things like hiking in the peaks at the weekend, and going out on Friday nights.