Marketing Assistant for Digital Imaging Product Marketing team for Europe Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my year at Sony Europe. I got out of it exactly what I wanted, which was to experience what its like to work in a global company. I also had fun, worked with some great people and developed my skills.

On my placement I was part of a great team, which made me feel at home there. I mainly felt valued when it came to using a software called gfk, as not that many people were experienced at using it, whereas I had practised and become very competent at using it.

I was given the most support and guidance from my manager, who from the very start took an interest in my development. If I ever had to do any menial tasks, my manager would ask me to analyse the data/ask my opinion or help me to understand what the work was being used for so that I could also learn from it. I was also given support from other colleagues in my team, who would help me to work through a problem together if I got stuck.

I was quite often either very busy or didn't have much to do. After some time there, in the quiet periods I was able to find odd work to do if my manager or colleagues couldn't find me anything.

I wasn't given much responsibility on my placement, however I believe that is partly because of the team structure - the responsibility lies with the product managers in my team. The up side of this is that my job has been stress free, however I would have learnt more if I got given more responsibility.

The excel skills I have developed during my placement will definitely help me in future jobs. However there are not many other 'hard' skills that I have developed. Nevertheless I believe it shouldn't be underestimated the workplace etiquette you learn on placement, which will make it easier to transition from uni to work life after graduating. Having been on placement I am also more confident in my abilities, strengths, weaknesses, etc.

The atmosphere in the office is very friendly and I have enjoyed working in it. The UK floor is much more lively than the European floor in the office, which is generally more serious - this said, I think the culture in the European floor is much more interesting to work in.

We were the second year of interns at Sony, so the scheme could have been more organised in terms of it being a complete programme, including training, support and more standardisation across roles. We had a few intern days throughout the year which were good to hear about what some of the other interns were doing in their roles.

I didn't receive much training and development during my placement. I mainly learnt from my manager, who kindly invested his time in me.

I find Sony an appealing place to come back to work. However, they do not yet have a grad scheme. Therefore if I really wanted to come back, I would need to find a specific role I wanted and apply for it the same as everyone else - of course they would take into account that I have worked there before. Personally, I would like to try something different when I graduate anyway.

There is a great community of interns at Sony, they have helped make my experience working really fun. I spend my lunchtimes with them and sometimes organise to do things outside of work. I also live with 2 other Sony interns.

I was based in the Weybridge office and lived in Weybridge. The cost of living is quite high in this area and the town is small - there are quite a lot of bars and restaurants but no clubs and limited shops.

What nightlife?! There are no clubs in Weybridge. The closest places to go out are Woking, Guildford (Student area) or into London.

I go to the work gym along with most of the other interns. Whilst it is not the biggest or most exciting gym, the atmosphere there is great.