IT Intern Review

I enjoyed the placement very much. I feel very fortunate that I got the opportunity to do my placement at a company like GE because this has honestly been one of the best experiences of my life. Not only has it taught me so much as a professional, it has nurtured my personal growth as well. I can now confidently say that I have experience of working as part of an IT team and know how a large-scale business operates. I believe that this opportunity is a wonderful start to my career and future. The guidance and hands on support I received from my placement tutor and my peers exceeded my expectations and has helped me learn something new every week.

I was very hesitant to meet my colleagues going into this internship because I have always identified myself as someone who shies away from being very outgoing and socially confident. However, one of the goals I had set for myself at the very start was that I would change this. Looking back, I think it was a lot easier to achieve this goal because everyone was so welcoming and the fact that all the other interns made it so easy for me to get along with them. They all instantly made me feel comfortable and within the first few months, all four of us become good friends and I think they are one of the biggest reasons why I actually looked forward to going in every day. We work really well as a team because we get along so well, creating a fun atmosphere where there is something to look forward to every day at work. The workplace itself is very diverse. All the people I have worked with during this placement, be it the other interns or the people who are a part of my ERP team, have different strengths and have given me the opportunity to learn so much from them, which has contributed to my personal growth.

The guidance and hands on support I received from my placement tutor exceeded my expectations and has helped me learn something new every week. I was treated as an integral part of the team at all times and was encouraged to take initiatives on a regular basis. Towards my second ERP project, I was also given more of a Leadership role which boosted my confidence greatly and helped me further develop those skills. My contributions were always valued and I always received positive feedback on my performance which proved to be a greater motivator.

Some days were very quiet while others were extremely busy when things needed to be completed straightaway, and these were so stressful to the point where I had to work quite a few evenings to get everything done. So it definitely had its ups and downs. However, I always had something to do at all times, so I wasn't sit around idle

Working as an IT intern at GE as part of my placement has helped get me an insight into the industry and has given me a strong understanding of the skills that can help me succeed in this field. During my placement I was part of the ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) team implementing Oracle systems across various regions. I was a part of 2 successful ERP project, Angola JV and Project Stardust. During both the projects, I was in charge of administering HP Quality Centre, a centralised tracking tool we use to keep track of the all the test cases and defects. I was the owner of the test scripts for Finance, Supply Chain and Services. I was also responsible for delivering Status Tracking & Progress Reports to Senior Management on many different areas (Testing Readiness, Defect Resolution, Sign Off etc). During Project Stardust, I was also given more of a Leadership role which involved driving daily calls, leading an entire team to resolve defects during both the testing periods, System Integrated Testing and User Acceptance testing. In addition to this, I was working on several smaller projects simultaneously such as being a part of the Project Stabilization project in our Services plant down south in Montrose Charleton Road as well as the Europe Simplification project.

I can proudly say that I am more self- confident, business savvy and social as a person than I was before. I ended up learning and experiencing so much more than I thought I would in this duration. I got the opportunity to not only develop new soft skills but also delve into the technical side with programming, allowing me the opportunity to work in both aspects all while learning how to manage my time effectively and enhancing my organisational and communication skills.The placement also taught me the importance of planning, prioritizing and organising; all equally important traits I look forward to using in my future professional career.

The atmosphere was great every day in the office. Since all us interns got along so well, we worked really well as a team because we get along so well, creating a fun atmosphere where there is something to look forward to every day at work. The workplace itself is very diverse.

It was very organised. I received a training agreement before I started which outlined everything in detail what I was supposed to be working on and what I would be doing on the course of the internship. My academic tutor made sure everything was set up before I got started with my internship and remained in contact all during my internship

My contributions were always valued and I always received positive feedback on my performance which proved to be a greater motivator. Seeing how my work impacted the business was probably the best part of this internship for me. For example, I designed the architecture and layout of a new initiative application, Integrated Project Planning. I get to see the benefit this will have for the customers in real time which makes me feel valued because I feel as if I have contributed to the development of this company.

The graduate prospects are great in GE. There is a graduate leadership program called the Digital Technology Leadership Program, which focuses on IT work, while other such programs focus on many other areas of the business. The application process is quite similar to the application process of the internship and the leadership programs offers many exciting opportunities

All the other interns instantly made me feel comfortable and within the first few months, all four of us become very good friends not only in the workplace but outside the workplace as well. Living in a small university centric city definitely had its perks because we would often go out on student nights for bowling or mini golf which was always fun.

I based in Aberdeen in Scotland for the duration of my placement. This is quite a student centric city with two universities so the cost of living is quite affordable. I was pleasantly surprised by the cost of the apartments and the fact that I was able to afford to live in my own one bedroom apartment. All the amenities were reasonably affordable as well which was nice

Again, as I was based in Aberdeen for the duration of my placement which has two universities, it was quite student centric so the Nightlife was quite good. There were a lot of things to do in the city centre from pubs to clubs and everything else. And on student nights, everything was quite cheap which was a nice bonus.

General Electric is a great place to work in because of not only the good work you do for the company but also the wonderful opportunities you have to give back to the community. There are lots of wonderful volunteering opportunities as well as a lot of fun activities to get involved in like cycle races or mountaineering and many more