Summer Vacation Student Review

I cannot express how much I enjoyed my summer placement with Arup's Rail team. It was a steep learning curve, which I was very happy about, as it enabled me to learn a lot of new skills. Throughout the experience I received lots of support and advice and the team were all extremely friendly and helpful.

I felt valued right from the beginning of my placement. To be honest I was a little bit surprised that already in week one I was trusted to produce work that would be presented to the clients. I enjoyed the challenge and felt very much like part of the team. My work was taken seriously which I found very motivating.

Everyone I worked with was happy to help me whenever I needed it. They overlooked my work in person and, if unavailable, they were easily reached by email or business messenger. Everyone was patient to answer all the technical and theoretical questions which helped me deepen my understanding of Rail. What is more, as soon as I arrived I found documents and emails written especially for me with my job briefs so I could get started whenever I felt ready. I felt well guided throughout the placement.

I decided to join the Rail team, because I hadn't learnt anything about Rail before. I wanted to learn something new and tackle a challenge. The experience was invaluable and extremely eye opening. Unfortunately my university course doesn't focus on Rail, therefore I am not sure if I will be able to apply my newly gained knowledge directly, however I am sure that global understanding and broadened engineering perspective will benefit me in my final year's project. I'm hoping to continue working in Rail after I graduate, so the skills I learnt would highly benefit me then. In terms of team work, office life and CAD use- these skills are easily transferable to other disciplines of engineering and beyond and so will definitely come in use both at the university and during my work life.

Upon arrival I was given materials to read to familiarise myself with the Rail environment. I was also given briefs of projects I would be working on. This was an easy and efficient way of introducing me to the discipline and the placement. I was given time to find my bearings before the work started which I found extremely helpful. My colleagues were giving me tasks related to various projects but they all knew what else I was working on, so prioritising was easy as they were all aware of my workload. This enabled me to learn and work systematically. I only wish we had discussed the goals of the placement at the beginning so we could tick skills I could learn off. Perhaps there was something that we could have easily covered but was overlooked?

I cannot say a bad word about the atmosphere in the office. Everyone was extremely friendly, chatty and helpful. I felt like part of the team within hours as I felt that my colleagues genuinely wanted to get to know me. We went out for lunch and socials a few times. We are still in touch even though the placement has finished. This is a testimony of how amazing the team was. Working with them was a pleasure.

As my summer placement was only short (3 weeks) I feel that the company investment was pretty high. I was given a new laptop with access to the Arup's university pages where I found a few courses that I skimmed through in a spare minute. I was also given options to go to educational talks and discussions. They were aware of skills that I could learn and were providing me with opportunities to gain those skills. I was also invited to attend a meeting with a client. Arup took good care of me and my personal development.

It was an invaluable experience. Before the placement I was considering working for a contractor and could not make my mind up whether it was for me or not. After the summer experience of working for Arup I learnt about the office life and could see myself having a similar full time role. I have to admit that having a full time job, as demanding as this was very tiring and it made me realise that it will take a while to get used to!

I wish my placement was longer than three weeks but already within those three weeks I gained some understanding on how the company works and its culture. I guess, if the placement was longer my understanding would be fuller but I believe that the experience I had was sufficient to have a good insight into Arup's culture. They strike me as being a very healthy company with good values, priorities and ethics.

Like I mentioned above, I wasn't sure if I would like to work for a consulting company. I was considering either research or contracting. Not only the placement opened my eyes to consulting and convinced me that the office environment wasn't bad, but it also 'hooked me up' on Rail. It made me realise how much I have been taking Rail for granted. It's a wider discipline than I anticipated and I would welcome an opportunity to work in Rail in the future.

I applied for this placement not for the money but for the experience. The salary was an added bonus. I was quoted a sum per hour. Because my placement was very short I wasn't even there any more on the day of the pay, and only saw the money in my bank account. I didn't receive a pay slip and I'm concerned that it was sent to the work email, which was deleted as I left the company. I decided to give the accountants a bit more time and if I do not receive it soon I will get in touch with the book keepers.

Yes, there were very many opportunities to network and meet colleagues from other disciplines and even offices. Our office had casual Friday meetings with tea and biscuits which gave me an opportunity to network with people from the whole office. My colleagues were aware of my interests and would introduce me to people that had broader understanding of those disciplines, who would then take me to their teams and introduce me to everyone. I was also introduced to people from other offices and cities, either in person or through the phone. I couldn't get over the fact how welcoming and inspiring everyone was. I learnt so much about and from people in three weeks it's unbelievable.

In my case, within the three weeks, networking was pretty informal. As mentioned above, I would either meet people over a tea and biscuits in the office or be introduced to someone by my colleagues. The casual manner of those meetings helped me feel at ease. The only formal event I attended was the client progress meeting where I met people representing two big clients. A few social events took part during the placement and I was amazed to see how close everybody was. One could see true friendships, yet the office environment was kept professional. I found it very interesting and inspiring. It made me want to stay in the team.

Yes, I did find out about activities employees can get involved in outside of work. I was introduced to the social rep of the office and he thoroughly explained to me what options there are, ranging from sports and hikes to trips abroad. Unfortunately I couldn't get involved in anything over the short three weeks of my placement, but I'm glad to hear that there are a few options to choose from.

Absolutely! Without question one of the best thing I've ever done for my development. My previous placements were for contracting companies. I enjoyed them a lot but this placement just wrapped it all up for me before my final decision on my graduate job opportunities. If I could recommend anything to anyone: try both! I thought I would want to work for a contracting company so I nearly didn't try consulting at all. I'm so glad I did! Honestly, give both sides a go so you can make a more informed decision about your future.