Placement Design Engineer Review

I'd say a seven is a fair score for enjoyment. Entering into the working world is never going to be as good as life as a student but I think this was a good experience of working. The atmosphere in the design engineers was relaxed and not overbearing, with welcoming people. Also, you can make what you want to of the work that you do, and so if you put in the effort and interest it can be as rewarding as you make it.

Especially when I speak to my friends that are on placement at other companies, it makes me appreciate that I am valued here. I can truly say that I am treated like I am any other employee here pretty much all the time. Anyone here will take the time to help me if its needed but when it comes to tasks I am assigned and the work I do in general, I don't get given different tasks or tasks that aren't important. I think here you don't come in to watch a team work or to just get to know the company, you become a proper team member who can contribute as much as the next person.

I think here you get given the right amount of guidance and support. You get eased into the work and have your boss as well as a colleague who in a way mentors you. However you don't just get given a step by step on how to do anything and everything to do with your job. You get guidance when it is needed, but if you can work something out and don't need spoon feeding that doesn't happen either. A nice balance, for me at least, of being left alone and guided.

It varies depending on the required workload for the team you are in at the time. There can be some days that are a little boring because you don't feel like you are contributing or working much, and there can be some days where you have a tight deadline to work to and have your head down and maybe have to stay late after you can leave for a while to get things done. I don't mind the latter as I enjoy the pressure that comes with deadlines and I think it makes work more interesting, but the lulls in work and the generally relaxed atmosphere mean you don't wear yourself out

As I have said you are treated like any other employee in that you are given work to do just like them. The biggest and most vital projects don't come your way, but that is to be expected when there are far more qualified members of the team to do those jobs. You are given enough responsibility to still feel vital and valued in your role.

I think that the most vital skill that I have gained will be the work ethic. Before this I had an almost non existent work ethic, especially during the days. After this though I believe that I will be far better at planning my time around work, and doing days of work so I don't leave things to the last minute or have to work at night. It has shown me that you can still do a lot with your evenings if you work through the day after getting up at a good time. This is essential the further you go through university and life in general so I think I am going to be a lot more productive going forward than I was before I came here.

I really liked the atmosphere in this workplace. It was very relaxed and not overbearing in the slightest. People are friendly and welcoming and there isn't anyone breathing down your neck and monitoring you at all hours of the day. This means that you can do your work in your way that suits you, which should mean they get the best results out of you as well. Its not too loud, but not silent as well, which I think is a good way for a workplace to be.

I have had rotations around teams within the design team. This has been good as in each team I am exposed to different thing, and therefore learn different things. However this is the first time they have had a placement student for a year in the design team so it has been a bit thrown together and there hasn't been a set program for me from the outset, which I expected from such a huge name company. All things considering the set up has worked out fairly well though.

I have been trained very well by the company on this placement. You go through the necessary training when you first join to be able to do your job, but beyond that the training has gone on through the year as opportunities have arisen. Even training that is not necessarily relevant o my job but gives me an understanding of others has been done which has really helped me to get more experience and develop me.

I am not totally set on coming back here for a job after university, but it is an attractive company to work for. The salary is good and when you work for a company that is based all over the world this means that there will be opportunity to work all over the world as well. This is a big drawing factor for me as I want to experience more of the world, and if you can work for a big powerful company while you do that then that's a bonus.

The social scene wasn't the best, mainly because there wasn't any other placement students in design on site. The general colleague was a lot older than me, usually with kids etc. This meant that as I was living at home I just stuck to my friends and hobbies that I had before I came here, and means I didn't make the most of the social side of things at work. There have been a couple of nights out with work so far that I have been on that have been good, though.

Cost of living for me was amazing! Life in the north is cheap anyway, and add to that that I was living at home and that means very cheap. I paid £150 a month in rent to my parents and then didn't have to buy food or pay bills or anything like that. I obviously paid for anything I did and petrol to get to work but on a whole my cost of living was very low, as it is in general in this area as well. Rent for places close to work is very low.

The nightlife right next to where I work isn't great, but I have grown up going to Durham and Newcastle which are both nearby, and I enjoy both of them. So, overall I would say the nightlife in the north east is good, and people here just love to go out and drink and have a good time.

There was a few weeks at the start of work when there was five a side footy going on, and there have been a few nights out organised, but aside form that there has been nothing regular work related. All my hobbies such as sports clubs and that I already had a full life of before I came, so I would say in the area there is plenty to do outside of work, you just have to find it.