Summer Intern Review

I am enjoying it, my colleagues are very friendly and although there is a lot to learn, everyone is very willing to answer all my questions and go right back to basics making me enjoy learning about the company and its products and processes. I would feel very lucky if I ever got a job with Sclumberger.

All my colleagues are very friendly and helpful, we would also have a good laugh at times. Although the work I am doing so far doesn’t require much knowledge as it is copying CMM results onto a spreadsheet so I don’t get the opportunity to be involved with my colleagues as much as I would like to. Everyone on the factory floor is also friendly and willing to explain to me what it is they are doing.

My supervisor is very good, they gave me a list of necessary people I need to meet to improve my contacts and processes it would be interesting for me to watch to aid my learning. They also gave me a list of useful training if I ever have a free moment. They ensure I am included in all of the team meetings and that I get as many different experiences as possible, for example watching destructive testing and they also organized a few days for me to learn how to turn on the centre lathes in the apprentice shop.

I always have something to do, although sometimes not very exciting. Every morning we have a meeting just so we know what everyone on the team is doing and what stage different parts and problems are at. After this everyday is different, but mostly at the minute the mornings are spent doing data mining on the computer. After lunch I have shortage sheets to prepare and update every day for a meeting. Then the afternoon I can observe a part being assembled in assembly or testing if there is any going on or more data mining on the computer.

Not very much, I only observe most engineering problems being resolved, I never get an input into any of it. The most responsibility I have been given so far was taking shear rings to the nearby university in a taxi to be destructively tested and I recorded the readings and gave feedback.

This experience will definitely help with my degree as I have now witnessed many processes first hand and have even tried some of them myself (eg turning, tolerance stacks, CAD). Also the people I have met I hope I keep in contact with for future contacts whether I get the opportunity to work in this sector or even if I don't get that opportunity. I also feel my confidence and communication skills have improved just from witnessing and listening to good examples of the people in my work place and trying to implement them myself, these will definitely help me through life.

Very relaxed, everyone could get on with their own work but at the same time there could be people discussing a problem but it wouldn't distract you from your own work. I feel I could go up to anyone in the office if I ever needed help even with just general things like computer problems. At times there is a lot of chatter which gives you a break from the computer for 5 minutes, especially if its someones birthday then they bring in sausage rolls and treats for everyone, no one is left out.

It was relatively well organized. Only thing that wasn't was my first week when I had to do a load of training on the computer in a room on my own, but once I got into the office I got paired up with my 'buddy' and she taught me a lot, all the basic things like where to find and how to use all the different software. Also I liked how my manager gave me a list of people I should see about different things as it helped me make those contacts myself and learnt a lot about all the different areas on just our campus.

At the beginning the training was quite poor as I sat in a room on my own for the first week with a laptop just doing lots of online tests on QUEST after having watched videos and looked through powerpoints to be able to answer the questions. I feel the first week of training could be improved, as I don't think anyone learns much from looking through powerpoints on their own, especially if you are doing it all day for 3 or 4 days. Although once I got into the office, I have had more training but it has been with other people and been a lot more practical and involved, helping me learn more and enjoy it a lot better as well. Engineers being trained on the apprentice centre lathes and milling machines is definitely worthwhile in my opinion, as I learnt not only how the machine works but the difficulty in machining even simple parts to a tight tolerance. The 'lunch and learns' are also very informative, refreshing everyone on knowledge that will help them in their job.

They are very appealing, as I know Schlumberger is a worldwide company and also has oilrig options for work, and the idea of being able to travel with your job is amazing as its what I have always wanted to do. Also, from talking to different managers I have figured out they have been in a lot of different apartments within the company, showing how within the company there are different opportunities for you to apply for another job if you are not happy with your current or looking a change. Also the hours are very flexible, which is a great bonus.

Yes definitely. Some of them play football together, I have been mountain biking with some of them, there was a family fun day with a football tournament organized for the colleagues and they also celebrate birthdays whether it is in work or dinner and a few drinks outside of work. I think the social side of Schlumberger is very good.

It could have been worse, although I am a uni student I lived at home with my parents during the placement so didn't cost me a penny for living and the socializing cost wasn’t too bad either, especially when movie nights and game nights are a common occurrence and very fun.

Where I worked was a 15 minute drive from the main city, which has great nightlife. There is a lot of variety, you can go to a few casual bars for a few drinks or you can go to a range of nightclubs, depending on what night it is and what the offers are of course!

Yeah, as I already lived there I had already a lot of activites going on such as sailing and swimming. Through work colleagues I also got into mountain biking which was great fun. Other opportunities included charity events such as long ziplines across the main river or muddy obstacle courses.