Project Management Summer Internship Review

My time with BAE Systems was fantastic. It is such a great company to work for. I was given given a real project and had lots of opportunities to show initiative while also having guidance in order for me to learn and develop. All the BAE Systems employees are great- always willing to help and going out of their way for you to have a great time. I was lucky enough to experience lots of different aspects of BAE Systems with visits to Portsmouth naval base, the MAI office as well as Applied Intelligence with visits of the T45, the Typhoon production line as well as the Farnborough Air show. I highly recommend this summer internship!

All of my colleagues and everyone I met in the course of this internship were extremely friendly, knowledgeable and willing to help in any situation. It is important to reach out to people during the internship and get the most out of your time here by showing this initiative. I really loved and valued the friendly and welcoming atmosphere here.

It was a perfect balance between freedom to show initiative and management guidance. I had the opportunity to set my own daily tasks- defined by my own project plan that I set myself at the start of my internship. Every morning I would meet with my supervisor to present my findings as well as show my progress, ask questions and receive feedback. I also reached out to lots of different people across the business and received lots of help from everyone.

You are as busy as you want to put effort into your project. There is always something to do- it all depends on you showing initiative and your drive to complete your tasks.

I was given a real project which was of great importance to the company. This felt very rewarding and valuable work to be doing. I was also expected to present my work on various occasions to a range of levels of management which although daunting- was a very challenging and fantastic learning experience.

This internship has given me a real insight into such a large multinational company. I also learnt a lot about project management as well as lots about the complexity of people management. This has helped me understand what I want to specialize in for my masters thesis in the coming year.

I was lucky to be in a brand new office in Farnborough with fantastic facilities. Everyone in the office was very friendly, knowledgeable and willing to help making it a friendly and welcoming atmosphere.

The internship does not have a strict rigid structure. I was given one main project and other smaller tasks and as an intern you take it in whatever direction you want. This worked perfectly for me- as I could show initiative by setting a project plan and organizing my own day accordingly to reach my end deliverables.

We had to complete the general training that all employees complete at the start of their employment. I also organized talks with different people in the business in order to learn about their roles and responsibilities. There was no particular set training for summer interns (apart from the end of internship conference); but you learn a lot by doing the work and the guidance provided by my supervisor.

The graduate scheme is very appealing. I think BAE Systems invests a lot in in personal development making it a highly attractive company to join There are many opportunities to grow within the company and experience multiple facets of the company.

Everyone was very friendly and welcoming but there was no real social scene in amongst colleagues.

It is difficult to find somewhere to live for 3 months but I managed to find somewhere in student housing close by which was very convenient. The Farnborough office is in a business park and therefore does not provide a social scene.

Non existent.

There were a few activities organized while I was there such as cricket, garden party games and football.