Summer Intern Review

I really enjoyed my time at Rolls-Royce. The work was extremely interesting and it was a great working environment in the office. Also it was very enjoyable due to the intern community - due to the number of interns/grads there was many others at a similar age around the office.

I felt extremely valued the full way through my placement. Everyone was very friendly and keen to help and even other employees who weren't in my team were open to finding out about me and interested in my experiences. It was a very welcoming office and I know I will definitely keep in touch!

I was given lots of guidance by my supervisor during the placement. If ever I was in need of help he would give me advice or point me in the right direction of who to ask. My project followed a very logical process which was set out well from my manager at the beginning which I was able to follow and adapt as required.

Because my project lasted the full duration of the placement I was able to completely determine how I spent my time. This gave me the flexibility to create my own deadlines and it meant that I could create the perfect balance of work for myself. At times I was waiting around for assistance but I still had other work to do to fill in the gaps while I was waiting.

I have enhanced by CAD and programming skills which will really help me when I return to university. I also had to write a final report on my project and carry out two presentation to senior colleagues so this really helped to build my confidence and also are important skills that will be again required in university and later life.

The general atmosphere in the office was great. It seemed fairly relaxed although still professional. Due to the nature of the job there was a lot of interaction with lots of employees - by the end I think I had spoken to the majority of the office. Everyone was very keen to chat and give help when it was required. There was also a large number of graduates and interns which was nice to spend time with others a similar age.

The internship was pretty well organised. It is clear that there is a very good scheme in place which included the necessary training and also involved social activities for the interns. However there were a few issues for example my line manager moved jobs during my attachment and this did not get modified so I couldn't correctly fill out my performance review or necessary signing off information.

The future employment prospects are great. There is a great grad scheme in place that clearly has been running for many years so it is well set up. However since I still have two more years at university I have to undertake another summer internship before I can be accepted into the grad scheme however if I'd of only had one more year I could of had the opportunity to go straight on the grad scheme.

There was a great social scene with the majority of the interns staying in one of the university halls we were all close together and it meant that we got to know the interns better. There were regular social activities organised by the intern and grad association and there was also netball and football teams especially for the interns which was good to meet new people.

The university halls were pretty reasonable and it was very easy to organise as Rolls Royce had provided all of the necessary information. Socialising was pretty reasonable - there are several offers around the town - some for Rolls Royce employees only! So this made socialising more reasonable and the shuttle bus from the site to town was free.

Not too bad although I'm not used to big cities so can't really comment! There are lots of cocktail places/bars however the clubs are more limited. The town was very close to the accommodation so it is easy to walk everywhere and due to the limited options it meant that you knew more people out which is always fun.