Engieering Intern Review

Very good experience at Rolls-Royce. Got involved from the get go and given enough responsibility to keep me busy but nothing overloading. Would definitely recommend their internship scheme to undergraduates who are interested in joining Rolls-Royce as it is a perfect stepping stone to joining the graduate scheme and finding out whether the company is right for you.

I felt valued at all times by colleagues. I was treated like a graduate from day 1 and was included in every meeting. My projects were fairly low priority engineering tasks (understandably) but people were always willing to spare time to help me do the best job I could do. If I expressed an interest in a different project or didn't understand a particular concept, someone was always there to help.

Although usually busy, my supervisor would always be prepared to offer me time to run through any issues I was having with my project work at some point. Despite this, the time I did get with my manager was invaluable! Considering the timescales my manager was working to, I am impressed he managed to squeeze me into his busy schedule so frequently!

There were times where I was really busy, particularly towards the end of my placement with all my deadlines looming and there were times where I needed more work, however I feel Rolls-Royce gives you the opportunity to be as busy as you want to be -I would go on factory visits and discuss the grad scheme in different engineering functions with grads during times where my workload was lacking, so it really depends what you do with your spare time at work.

I think I was given sufficient responsibility to keep myself busy and get involved with the team. The work was sufficient to stretch me to do my best, but never overbearing. The majority of my project work required me to analyse documents and discuss issues with other colleagues with support when needed, so for an undergraduate I would say I was given a good level of responsibility for sure.

Skills -not massively. However the training received was invaluable. I have still rated the placement highly in this area overall because the skills I developed will be useful in the future and compared to previous placements I have worked in, Rolls-Royce is the best at developing you as a person and as a professional. I think the placement will mostly help with my group work at university and and in general it has given me a much more organised and structured approach to problem solving.

Very good. The team were always lively and welcoming every day. There was a good mix of people, both graduates and technical engineers and managers, in my office and discussions usually varied - not always about work either which was nice! That being said, the office environment was also great for getting work done since the atmosphere peaked and troughed. If I needed quiet, there were booths available to sit and do work undisturbed which was really beneficial towards the end of my placement.

Well organised. I frequently received updates from the Human Resources team reminding me when some of my career aspiration deadlines were due. When I started the placement, my company induction was very well organised and was given work to complete straight away which really complimented what I said in the 'valued' section.

Rolls-Royce invests a lot of time in their graduates to train them to a very high standard. As an intern, when I started the placement, my company induction was very well organised and my work was very well explained so very little training was required. Other people started their placements with two weeks of training to bring them up to speed with a certain piece of software or process so this really depends on the type of placement you are doing.

Very appealing. I think the company will invest a lot of time and resources in me and give me the opportunity to take my career as far as I want it to go. The graduate scheme looks very appealing since you do several placements in different areas of the business, which will give you a broader appreciation of each area the company is involved with.

Yes, the other interns regularly organised to do things in Derby/Nottingham during the week. The main social activities were clubbing, sport and the gym that I knew about but people were always willing to try new things. I started going climbing which I had never done before, played football twice a week, went to the pub on a Tuesday with all the interns and then out in Derby/Nottingham on Friday/Saturday.

Derby is relatively cheap so you can do almost anything with the money you earn. A night out in Derby (depending on how much you drink and what you're like as a person) can vary between £10-40 in total, so nothing too expensive. Nottingham is slightly more expensive since you have to travel. Other social activities are no different to what you would expect to pay elsewhere (football £3 for an hours session, cinema £10 etc.)

Not great but it sort of depends what you're used to. If you want a great nightlife then Nottingham is so close and easy to get to, so there are alternative possibilities to explore if that is what you want. Considering the majority of the interns are sociable, a trip to the pub on Tuesday after work was probably my favourite night of the week so the fact that the clubs are pretty average really doesn't make much difference to me.

Yes. The main social activities were clubbing, sport and the gym that I knew about but people were always willing to try new things. I started going climbing which I had never done before, played football twice a week, went to the pub on a Tuesday with all the interns and then out in Derby/Nottingham on Friday/Saturday. Other people played basketball, went to the park/escape rooms etc. so there's plenty to do to keep yourself occupied.